Foresters and wood processors aren't breaking out the bubbly over New Zealand's free trade deal with South Korea.
Bill McCallum Photo: Supplied
Under the agreement signed last weekend, the tariffs of about 7 percent that New Zealand pays on processed timber going to Korea would disappear in 10 years.
Logs, which make up the bulk of new Zealand's forestry exports to South Korea, are already largely tariff free.
But the Wood Council of NZ's chairman said having tariffs for another 10 years would be a barrier to growing the trade in processed wood products, mostly lumber.
Bill McCallum said South Korea takes an estimated 15 to 20 percent of New Zealand's softwood log and lumber exports.