Vietnamese producers of wood furniture are struggling ”due to an increase in the price of imported wood that has negatively affected their operations”. Source: Vietnam News
The price of timber imports from the EU, US and Africa increased in Vietnam by 20%, in the last five months. Combined with the fact that Vietnamese furniture producers have fixed sales prices for the next 3-6 months, the increase of timber prices are causing big losses.
The surge in prices is mainly attributed to the US housing recovery and limited supply from Africa, says a Vietnamese official. Despite these difficulties, the Vietnamese furniture exports are higher by 11%, year-on-year, in the first six months of 2013 (up to US$2.23 billion). At the same time, the imports of wood are lower by 5% (down to US$617 million).