According to the Vietnam Timber and Forest Product Association, the Covid-19 epidemic is causing many exports to be delayed, affecting production, yet forest products still grow in both volume and value. In the first 2 months of this year, export turnover of wood and wooden furniture reached US $ 1.53 billion, up 10.1% over the same period last year.

In particular, the five most important wood export markets of Vietnam currently are the US, Japan, China, South Korea and the EU, accounting for 9.3 billion USD compared to over 10.3 billion USD, accounting for 90% of the total wood export turnover in 2019. In particular, the US is a huge market of Vietnam's timber industry. Statistics in 2019, the value of exports of wood products from Vietnam to the US accounted for 50% of the total export turnover of the entire wood industry.

Experts also said that the Covid-19 epidemic would affect wood exports this year. Tran Xuan Lap, chairman of the Vietnam Association of Wood and Forest Products, said many companies producing paper and pulp in China are had to cease operations or operate in moderation. In 2019, Vietnam exports wood chips to China of over US $ 972 million, but the Covid-19 epidemic will delay this activity.

According to assessments from enterprises, if the Covid-19 epidemic is still complicated and prolonged, businesses need to be proactive in sourcing raw materials for the wood industry from countries outside of China, however, this will affect production costs. According to experts, a good signal is that the number of enterprises participating in the timber industry and timber export is on the rise. In 2019, the country has nearly 4,500 export businesses (up 40% compared to 2018), including foreign-invested enterprises (FDI) and local businesses.

Source: Vinanet