Between now and the year’s end, the figure could reach roughly 6 billion USD.

Since early this year, the export of wood and wooden furniture has been dull, with a shortage of orders common in most businesses. In the past eight months, the export turnover neared 8.3 billion USD, down around 26% annually, Phuong said.

Since May this year, the Vietnamese firms have been importing a significant amount of raw wood materials which rise by 5-10% per month. This is a sign that they are actively preparing for end-of-year orders, he added.

Citing data from the International Trade Centre (ITC), Phuong revealed that the Vietnamese wood enterprises are also importing a substantial amount of machinery and equipment, totaling approximately 240 million USD, mostly from China, Europe, the Republic of Korea and Japan, among others.

According to him, the 2023 Vietnam International Woodworking Industry Fair (VietnamWood 2023) and the Vietnam International Furniture Accessories, Hardware & Tools Exhibition (Furnitec 2023) will be concurrently held in Ho Chi Minh City from September 20-23.

Organised by the Vietnam National Trade Fair & Advertising Company, Yorkers Trade & Marketing Service Co and HAWA, the events will also feature livestream sessions to introduce new technologies and a series of wood technology seminars with topics such as proactive production - simplified operations, green factories with a focus on carbon neutrality, equipment health and smart maintenance, among others./.VNA