Hanoi (VNA) – It is estimated that Vietnam’swood exports will reach 7.6 billion USD by the end of 2017, surpassing theyearly target of 7.5 billion USD set by the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

According to preliminary statistics from VietnamCustoms, from January 1 to December 15, the wood sector grossed more than 7.2billion USD in export turnover, which is hoped to top 8.5 billion USD by theyear’s end, including exports of furniture.

In November alone, wood exports rose nearly 3percent against October to hit 695.3 million USD, raising 11-month shipmentvalue of wood and timber products to 6.9 billion USD, an annual rise of 11percent.

In January-November, the US imported the mostfrom Vietnam, with purchase turnover of more than 2.9 billion USD, up 17.6percent, followed by China with 964.4 million USD, up 6.76 percent and Japan929.3 million USD, up 5.14 percent.

Statistics from Japan Customs showed that in thefirst 10 months of 2017, the country imported 600,000 tonnes of timberfurniture worth nearly 200 billion JPY (1.77 billion USD), representingyear-on-year increases of 2.3 percent and 3.4 percent respectively.

Vietnam’s timber furniture made up 22.3 percentof Japan’s total imports. Meanwhile, the market shares of China, Malaysia andthe European Union (EU) declined.

Wood exports to other markets such as the Republicof Korea (RoK), the UK, Australia and Canada exceeded 100 million USD inturnover. 

To ensure sustainable growth, the wood industryshould focus on technical standards of overseas markets.

Under a Korean government roadmap, the country’simporters will take accountability for the origin of legal timber at the end ofthis year. Japan will do the same in March 2018, which will impact Vietnam’swood exports because the RoK and Japan are two of the biggest wood importers ofVietnam.

Furthermore, as Vietnam and the EU concluded sixyears of negotiations for a Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) on Forest LawEnforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) in May 2017, the implementation ofthis deal will ensure all timber products shipped between the two sides,including those for domestic sales and exports, are legal.

The signing of the VPA/FLEGT is an importantevent, which could create fundamental changes in the wood processing sector inVietnam.

To Xuan Phuc, a senior policy analyst at ForestTrends, said the removal of imported wood materials without origin and usingwood with clear origin is essential to meet requirements from key markets suchas Japan, the RoK and China in the future.

He called for strong links from the business communityand strict controlling mechanisms from management agencies and localities.

Meanwhile, Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh CityHandicraft and Wood Industry Association Huynh Van Hanh advised businesses tocomply with technical criteria in foreign markets.-VNA