Vietnam’s furniture exports fell by 31.7% in the first quarter!
According to recent reports from Vietnamese media, due to a decrease in global demand, Vietnam’s timber and furniture exports in the first quarter of this year decreased by 28.3% year-on-year, with a total export value of only 2.9 billion US dollars. Wooden furniture was the main factor leading to a decrease in exports in the first three months, with an export value of 568 million US dollars, a year-on-year decrease of 31.7%.
As a comparison, according to statistics from the General Administration of Customs of China, the export value of Chinese furniture and its components in the first two months of this year was 64.08 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 10.1%.
It is understood that Vietnam’s timber and furniture export revenue began to rebound in March, increasing by 50% to $1.2 billion compared to February, but still 23% lower than the same month a year ago.
Do Xuan Lap, chairman of Vietnam Wood and Forest Products Association, told local media that since the end of last year, new orders have continued to shrink due to weak global demand, and Vietnam’s wood processing manufacturing activities have seen a downward spiral.
Lap said that the export orders from Vietnamese manufacturers are currently scarce, only arranged until the middle of this year, and most of them are small orders, adding that buyers in the United States, especially, have stopped placing new orders due to high inventory.
Many companies have even experienced large-scale layoffs. Experts suggest that the government needs to introduce new policies to support enterprises, create employment, and promote consumption in the Vietnamese market to prevent large-scale layoffs in the furniture industry due to the depletion of export orders.
Nguyen Liem, the head of the Pingyang (Provincial) Furniture Association and the chairman of Linyue Wood Industry Company, said that his company has retained more than 1000 workers, but has now reached its limit. We can only persist until the end of the third quarter, “he said. If the downturn in orders continues, there is a high risk of bankruptcy. Many Vietnamese furniture manufacturers also face the same problem.
The Vietnam Wood and Forest Products Association stated that despite high inflation rates, rising material costs, and supply chain blockages, the export value of Vietnamese wood and wood furniture exceeded $16 billion last year, 3.8% higher than the target. The furniture industry in Vietnam is one of the main export industries in Vietnam, contributing a significant amount of GDP and employment opportunities. According to official data from Vietnam, furniture exports from Vietnam have grown rapidly since 2019 and peaked in 2022, becoming one of Vietnam’s main export commodities. However, since 2023, the situation has started to decline sharply. The Vietnamese furniture industry is also seeking to expand its domestic market to alleviate the impact of declining export orders. However, due to the relatively low demand for high-quality furniture in the Vietnamese market, the development of the domestic market still faces many challenges.
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