Int’l woodworking machinery expo opens in Binh Duong province

The four-day event, jointly held by the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT), the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, and the Binh Duong Furniture Association (BIFA), attracts the participation of 150 domestic and foreign enterprises.

Those from Canada, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, the US, and Vietnam have brought the expo state-of-the-art equipment that meets green growth requirements and helps improve production capacity.

According to Director of the MoIT’s Trade Promotion Agency Vu Ba Phu, Vietnam saw strong growth in the wood and forestry sector during January-July, with export revenue rising over 23% year-on-year to top US$8.7 billion.

However, challenges are on the horizon for the sector to realise its export target of US$15.2 billion for the whole year, he said, adding large markets are increasing trade barriers and asking for exporters' compliance with sustainable forest management and carbon emissions reduction. Besides, businesses only get short-term orders with more stringent requirements on product design and quality.

BIFA Chairman Nguyen Liem said that the expo is a valuable opportunity for enterprises to meet, exchange ideas, and develop long-term cooperation, adding it’s time for local wood processing firms to transform technology and go digitalised to enhance their competitive edge.

As the capital of Vietnam’s wood processing for export, Binh Duong accounts for 35-45% of the sector’s total export revenue. During the seven months, the province shipped more than US$3.5 billion worth of wood products overseas, up 22.8% year-on-year, statistics show.