Vietnam exports $1.4 billion of wood products in January - May

Vietnam is expected to earn an export turnover of $1.4 billion from wooden products in the first five months of this year, an increase of 35% over the same period in 2009, according to the Vietnam Timber and Forestry Products Association. Nguyen Ton Quyen, the association's general secretary, attributed the increase to rising demand from traditional markets such as the United States, Japan and China, as Viet Nam News reported.

The rising export price of wooden products has boosted the export value, which this year was 3% more than that in 2009. In addition, the price of wooden materials imported for production has only risen marginally this year. The total value of imports of wooden raw materials in the first months of this year was just $300 million.

Most enterprises already had raw materials in storage, so the slight price increase is unlikely to affect export earnings, Quyen said.

The industry said it expects to easily meet the export target this year of $3 billion, as contracts worth about $3 billion had already been signed. Exports this year are expected to exceed 2009 by $320 million.

Vietnam's wooden products are exported to 120 countries and territories, of which the US and the EU are the country's two biggest markets, accounting for 44% and 29% respectively.

Vietnam has more than 2,000 enterprises producing wooden products – 500 of which make furniture. These firms are located mainly in HCM City and Binh Duong, Dong Nai and Binh Dinh provinces.

The country is aiming to earn an annual export turnover of $7 billion from wooden products by 2020.