Trade data: Myanmar teak exports helping fund military rule

By ELAINE KURTENBACH
AP Business Writer

BANGKOK (AP) — A report based on U.S. trade data shows American companies are still importing teak from Myanmar despite sanctions imposed after the military seized power. Teak is one of the most valuable hardwoods, used in yachts, home flooring and in expensive furniture. U.S. importers were still receiving shipments of teak from the Southeast Asian country as recently as December, according to data from the global trade database Panjiva. The human rights group Justice for Myanmar compiled the data for a report released Tuesday that urged governments to crack down on the teak trade in line with sanctions against the country’s military leadership.