Viet Nam and Poland rank among the world's top three exporters of wooden furniture, with export values of USD 3.7 billion and USD 3 billion, respectively, the Viet Nam Trade Office in Poland said, citing data from the Observatory of Economic Complexity (OEC).
In addition to its furniture manufacturing and exports, Poland has a world-class industry producing forestry and woodworking machinery, creating opportunities for cooperation with Viet Nam in developing the furniture production supply chain.
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Delegates attend a forum on wooden furniture in Poland. (Photo: Vietnam Trade Office in Poland) |
Experts and businesses said that despite being leading furniture producers, the two countries are not direct competitors because their products and target markets differ.
The two countries also have complementary strengths that could support closer cooperation.
As a developed industrial country with a sizeable agricultural sector, Poland manufactures a wide range of modern machinery for forestry operations, timber harvesting, processing, furniture production and product finishing.
Polish agricultural and forestry machinery is exported worldwide but remains relatively unfamiliar in Southeast Asian markets.
Polish manufacturers hope that Viet Nam can serve as a gateway for their products to enter the regional market. The effective operation of Polish machinery in Viet Nam would also provide an opportunity to showcase the quality of these products to customers across Southeast Asia.
With one of Europe's largest areas of planted forests, Poland could also become a potential supplier of raw materials and components for Viet Nam's furniture industry.
Representatives of leading Polish agricultural and forestry machinery manufacturers, including Pronar and Uni, have expressed their appreciation of Viet Nam's potential in furniture manufacturing and mechanical engineering.
Alongside promoting the sale of machinery and production lines for timber harvesting and processing, these companies are exploring partnerships with Vietnamese businesses to manufacture and assemble certain types of equipment in Viet Nam. The cooperation could eventually extend to technology transfers, according to the office.
Source: VNA