$92 Billion!!!
Posted by DécorDrama on March 29, 2007
World Furniture Trade Forecast To Hit US $92 Billion
By Chong Jin Hun
March 30, 2007
GUANGZHOU: World furniture trade is forecast to hit some US$92 billion (RM318.32 billion) this year, up 6 per cent from the US$87 billion (RM301.02 billion) last year, in tandem with the rapid globalisation of the industry, a renowned trade fair organiser said.
Udo Traeger, vice-president for furniture and interior design with Germany’s Koelnmesse GmbH, which organises the prestigious “interzum”-branded international furniture production trade fairs, said the uptrend is ongoing as more players are exporting their products.
“Current forecasts suggest that trade will grow from US$82 billion (RM283.72 billion) in 2005 and US$87 billion (RM301.02 billion) last year to US$92 billion (RM318.32 billion) this year.
“I think it is a growing trend because the furniture and interior design industry is really globalising. More and more companies are looking for new export markets,” Traeger told reporters at the annual “interzum guangzhou 2007″ trade fair in Guangzhou, China.
The four-day event occupied some 30,000 sq m of space at the Chinese Export Commodities Fair Pazhou Complex.
Malaysia is believed to have exported up to RM8 billion worth of furniture last year, a 4 per cent increase from the RM7.67 billion in 2005, according to the Malaysia Furniture Entrepreneur Association.
Globally, European companies take the lead, accounting for about a third of the world output and exports, Traeger said. But China’s booming furniture sector is fast catching up, helped by the nation’s relatively lower labour cost, which translates into more competitively-priced products.
According to China’s National Bureau of Statistics, the country had exported US$8.43 billion (RM29.17 billion) worth of furniture in the first half of 2006.
China’s rise in the furniture-making fraternity is largely perceived as a threat by its global counterparts who have no choice but find other means to compete instead of engaging in a no-win price war against lower-cost producers.
Traeger said China’s furniture sector is going strong, with offerings targeted at a broad spectrum of consumers globally. As such, the pricing pressure on players in South-East Asia is expected to increase.
The latest interzum guang- zhou, the fourth since its debut in 2004, has accommodated some 500 exhibitors from 25 countries.
About 59,000 visitors are expected to attend the fair which precedes the larger-scaled “interzum 2007″ in Cologne, Germany from May 9 to 12.
The upcoming event, to occupy about 150,000 sq m of gross floor area, is expected to host some 1,300 exhibitors from around 60 countries, besides an estimated 50,000 global visitors.
