Wooden furniture is produced at a factory in Đông Anh District, Hà Nội. Forestry exports were estimated at $9.1 billion in the first six months of this year, an increase of 3 per cent over the same period last year. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — The export of timber and wooden products is forecast to reach US$16.3 billion in 2022, close to the target set at the beginning of the year, according to the Việt Nam Administration of Forestry (VNFOREST).

According to Nguyễn Văn Diện, director of the Forestry Production Development Department, the forestry industry encountered many difficulties in the first half of this year, including China’s “Zero COVID” policy coupled with rising input costs and difficult transport due to the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Especially when the US Department of Commerce investigated wooden cabinets imported from Việt Nam, export orders decreased significantly. As the US is a large market for Việt Nam’s timber and wooden products, any fluctuation in this market will significantly affect the forestry industry’s export growth.

High inflation in many countries forced consumers to tighten spending, resulting in drops in demand for unnecessary products, including timber and wood products.

Nguyễn Quốc Trị, VNFOREST’s director, said it would work with associations and enterprises in the industry to expand export markets to avoid dependence on certain markets.

Enterprises should increase the use of domestic materials to process for export together with diversifying products to meet export demand, he said.

The focus will be placed on preventing trade frauds and tightening the import of timber from countries with a high risk of illegal wood origin, Trị said, adding that it was essential to enhance the linkage between wood processing companies and afforestation households to ensure the origin of wood, increase added value, reduce costs, and improve the competitiveness of Vietnamese timber and wooden products.

According to Diện, more than 372,000 hectares were certified for sustainable forests in 31 provinces and cities across the country. Of these, 264,000 hectares had Forest Stewardship Council certificates, and the rest had the National Forest Certification Scheme.

It was expected that an additional 90,000 hectares will be certified as sustainable forest this year.

The forestry export was estimated at $9.1 billion in the first six months of this year, an increase of 3 per cent over the same period last year and equivalent to 56 per cent of the target for the full year. The industry ran a trade surplus of $7.5 billion, 3 per cent higher than the same period last year.

Major export markets include the US, Japan, China, the European Union and the Republic of Korea, accounting for more than 90 per cent of the country’s total timber and wood products exports.

Forestry exports totalled $15.87 billion in 2021, 20 per cent higher than in 2020. — VNS