Wood exports hit record high despite COVID-19 in five months
Exports of wood and timber products surged 42 percent year-on-year to reach a record high of over 6.42 billion USD in the first five months of 2021 despite global supply chain disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to customs data.
Wood product exports hit record high despite COVID-19 (Photo: VNA)
HCM City (VNA) – Exports of wood and timberproducts surged 42 percent year-on-year to reach a record high of over 6.42billion USD in the first five months of 2021 despite global supply chaindisruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to customs data.
Of the figure, 4.96 billion USD came from wood furniture,up nearly 57 percent against the same period last year.
Domestic producers have adapted well to the “new normal”by stepping up digital trade meetings with foreign buyers in order to boostsales, said Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Ha Cong Tuan.
There is plenty of room for the global wood and furnituremarket to grow, said Bui Chinh Nghia, vice director of the Vietnam Forestry Administrationunder the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
Vietnam now makes up 9 percent of the global market, henoted, stressing that with the current growth rate, Vietnam will soon rise tothe fourth or even third places among the world’ largest exporters of woodproducts from the current fifth place.
According to several foreign importers, COVID-19-inducedsocial distancing orders and travel restrictions have forced people in manycountries to work from home, triggering increasing demand for home furniture.Vietnamese furniture has been more and more favoured by importers as producershave strictly complied with rules of origin.
Insiders, however, warned that rising orders may causetroubles for Vietnamese producers as disruptions in supply of material woodremain./.
With its abundance of tropical forest resources, Vietnam is aiming to become one of the world's leading centres for the production, processing and trade of forest products.
The export turnover of wood and wood products hit 4.99 billion USD in the first four months of 2021, a surge of 50.5 percent year-on-year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural development.
Vietnam raked in 22.83 billion USD from exporting agro-forestry-aquatic products in the first five months of 2021, representing a year-on-year increase of 30.3 percent, reported the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
Global demand for goods is recovering and this is an opportunity for Vietnam to boost its exports of consumer and industrial products, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT).
A key change in the draft decree is a provision requiring bank transfers for gold transactions valued at 20 million VND (765 USD) and above, to enhance transparency and verify customer identities.
In the first four months of 2025, trade turnover between Vietnam and Cambodia surpassed 3 billion USD, marking a 7% increase compared to the same period in 2024.
On June 19 alone, a total of 2,005 trucks completed customs clearance at Lang Son’s border gates — the highest single-day figure ever recorded in the province. Of these, 634 carried exports and 1,371 imports.
The OECD Economic Surveys: Vietnam 2025 report focuses on analysing the country’s macroeconomic fundamentals, the impact of international integration on attracting foreign investment and trade, and the country’s prospects for developing a low-carbon economy.
Antoine Colin, Senior Vice President for Global Supply Chain Digital Transformation & Resilience at HP Inc., affirmed HP’s strategic commitment to building a supply chain and ecosystem in Vietnam and the region.
Deputy Director General of the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT)’s Trade Promotion Agency Bui Quang Hung emphasised that logistics has evolved from a technical function into a core capability for Vietnamese exporters to maintain their competitive advantage in the US market.
A trade official has suggested companies work closely with shipping lines, airlines, and freight forwarders to monitor routes, transit times, and potential surcharges while exploring broader cargo insurance to cover risks like war and terrorism.
In addition to institutional reform, the agency is also rolling out key solution groups to combat counterfeit goods, imitations, and intellectual property infringements in the digital environment.
The event, co-organised by the Vietnam Trade Office in the UK and TT Meridian, a local importer of Vietnamese fresh produce, aims to build a national lychee brand and encourage broader recognition of Vietnamese fruits in a competitive, high-end market.
The industry's performance has been powered by bold investments in modern production lines, enabling Vietnamese firms to produce complicated products which were exclusive to advanced economies.
Outcomes of ABAC III will shape ABAC’s final policy recommendations to be submitted to the ABAC-APEC leaders’ dialogue, scheduled to take place in the Republic of Korea this November.
This is the second year the magazine has released the ranking, which is based on total revenue and key financial indicators of enterprises from seven countries in the region: Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, and Cambodia.
At the summit, publishing, tech, and media sectors will discuss emerging trends, business models, and sustainable solutions for digital publishing development in Vietnam.
This year’s “Vietnam Goods Week” marks a significant milestone as it is being held simultaneously for the first time in four locations across Asia: Japan, Hong Kong (China), Cambodia, and Malaysia, from June 19 - 22.
According to NordCham Vietnam Chairman Thue Quist Thomasen, the Vietnamese Government’s commitment to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 is both a challenge and an opportunity for businesses to contribute to green and sustainable growth.
The analysis from an investment perspective shows that the economy’s growth has been heavily capital‑driven, yet efficiency remains low as reflected by Vietnam’s Incremental Capital-Output Ratio (ICOR) being significantly higher than global and regional averages. This underscores the imperative to enhance capital‑use efficiency.
Wood product exports hit record high despite COVID-19 (Photo: VNA) 
