Plenty of room remains to boost wood furniture exports to US
VOV.VN - Despite the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, there remains ample space to bolster Vietnamese furniture and wood exports to the United States in the near future, according to industry insiders.
This information was shared by various experts during an online seminar held on December 16 to ramp up trade promotion in the field of wood furniture between the nation and the US.
Bui Huy Son, counselor of the Vietnam Trade Office in the US, said the US represents the world's largest consumer market for goods and has quickly recovered after being hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.
During the past 10 months of the year, the US imported wooden furniture worth US$7.2 billion from the Vietnamese market, up 29% against the same period from last year.
At present, the country remains the largest supplier of wooden furniture to the US, duly accounting for roughly 40% of the US’ total import value of furniture, Son added.
He noted that there is a positive outlook ahead for the export of Vietnamese goods and furniture to the US over the remaining months of the year due to growing demand among consumers and major holidays at the end-of-year period, coupled with the trend of working from home.
Sharing this viewpoint, Tom Russell, an expert in the furniture industry, emphasized that US importers and retailers are looking for capable and reliable partners, adding that the country enjoys numerous advantages in terms of skilled labour and raw materials which can ensure stable production demand to foreign markets.
Alongside these opportunities, the Vietnamese wood furniture industry is also facing a number of challenges, such as risks of trade remedies or logistics congestion on a large scale, experts said adding that the US has set forth strict requirements for information transparency and fair trade competition.
Nguyen Hoai Bao, vice president of the Handicrafts and Wood Industry Association of HCM City (HAWA), advised local businesses to gain greater insights into the US’ requirements and consumption trends. This should be done whilst devising a sustainable development strategy, investing digital transformation to improve product quality, while making changes in packaging to catch up with the latest shopping trends on e-commerce platforms.
