Vietnam is followed by Malaysia with USD 101.9 million and Indonesia with USD 61.7 million.
The proportion of wooden furniture imports from these three markets accounted for 22.9% of the total value of wooden furniture imports into Australia.
The Import-Export Department, Ministry of Industry and Trade, quoted statistics from the General Department of Customs saying that the export value of wooden office furniture reached USD 28.4 million in December, a year-on-year decline of 28.6%.
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Producing wooden furniture for export at Trieu Phu Loc Furniture Co., Ltd., Tan Uyen town, Binh Duong province |
The export value of wooden office furniture reached USD 370.3 million last year, down 15.9% over the same period in 2021.
In the structure of wooden furniture exports last year, office furniture is the item with the strongest decline because exports to major markets such as the U.S., Japan, China and the U.K. plummeted.
Office furniture exports were the largest to the U.S. market last year, reaching USD 225.4 million, down 13.6% over the previous year.
Export value to the U.S. accounted for 60.9% total export value of office furniture, followed by the Japanese market with USD 67.7 million; the Chinese market with USD 15.9 million; and the U.K. with USD 13.6 million.
High inflation has made consumers prioritize spending on food and essential goods, thereby cutting spending on office furniture.
In addition, high freight rates, along with a sharp rising in the purchase price of raw wood, increased production costs, making it more difficult for Vietnamese office furniture manufacturers.
The Import-Export Department said that the export prospect of wooden office furniture would also not be positive this year when the global economic situation was forecasted to continue to face many difficulties.
However, statistics from the International Trade Center (ITC) show that Australia's imports of wooden furniture reached USD 1.6 billion in the 11 months of last year, a year-on-year growth of 4.9%.
The Import-Export Department said that even though Australia was one of the most demanding markets in the world with many certification requirements, high product quality standards, and strict import processes, its consumers had a high standard of living and were willing to pay for high-priced imported items if they were satisfied with the product.
Therefore, to penetrate the Australian market, exporters needed to give top priority to product quality instead of price, said the department, while, understanding customer tastes and focusing on building a solid brand for wooden furniture products.
Source: VNA