Vietnam’s exports of wood and wooden furniture will reach only about 13.5 billion USD in 2023, down 15.5% year on year, President of the Vietnam Timber and Forest Product Association (VIFOREST) Do Xuan Lap told a seminar held in Hanoi on December 21.

According to forestry experts, sustainable forest certification for one million hectares of large-sized timber forests is a passport for Vietnam's wood processing industry to increase export value and export into potential markets.

Many wooden furniture manufacturers have added more working shifts, recruited more workers, and increased imports by 5-10 percent, indicating that enterprises are gearing up to implement orders for year-end deliveries.

Vietnam’s wood export is likely to hit about $14.5 billion this year, lower than the yearly target of $17 billion, Vice Chairman of the Handicraft and Wood Industry Association of HCM City (HAWA) Nguyen Chanh Phuong said.

Vietnam’s wood and wooden product exports have seen signs of gradual recovery, according to the Hanoi-based DSC Securities Joint Stock Company (DSC).

The State will remove difficulties to achieve the export target of timber and forest products this year.

The volatility and unpredictability in global markets may have caused challenges for many industries, including woodworking, but offered opportunities to agile businesses, according to experts.

Vietnam raked in an estimated 6.42 billion USD from forestry product exports in the first half of 2023, down 28.8% year on year, according to the Department of Forestry under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Timber enterprises were calling for support in terms of market information, requirements and consumer tastes to cope with declining exports which were pushing them into many difficulties from the beginning of this year.

Vietnam’s wood industry has unexpectedly fallen into an unprecedented slump amid a sharp decline in orders.

Many wood artisans are in need of support so that their works can get recognition in the global supply chain.

Vietnam's wood processing industry has set itself a modest export target of US$17.5 billion for this year, an increase of just 2.5 per cent over 2022, due to unfavourable conditions in the global market.

Vietnam earned US$ 1.1 billion from exporting plywood in the first 11 months of 2022, securing the fifth place in the world’s top five largest plywood exporters, according to the International Trade Center (ITC).

Australia increased its imports of wooden furniture from Southeast Asian markets last year, with Vietnam making up a significant portion of the overall figure, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

Vietnamese exporters of wood and wooden furniture expect to bring home 16.5 billion USD this year, fueled by an increase in the overseas shipment of woodchips and wood pellets in the first 10 months of this year.

Weak export market demand and stable freight rates rendered some wood materials imported into Vietnam cheaper.