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| Workers load wood at the 10,000-square-metre Tavico wood market in the southern province of Dong Nai. Wood exports in the province totaled $1.2 billion in 2015, up 17 per cent from 2014. — VNA/VNS Photo Thanh Vu |
DONG NAI (Biz Hub) — Wood exports in the southern province of Dong Nai totaled $1.2 billion in 2015, up 17 per cent from 2014, according to the provincial Statistics Office.
The figure also marked a trade surplus of $860 million, given that the province imported $337 million worth of wood materials for processing.
The locality's major importers are the US, Europe, Japan and the Republic of Korea.
According to the provincial Department of Industry and Trade, the province is home to over 618 firms making wooden furniture and handicrafts, accounting for 27 per cent of the country's wood shipments.
Phan Van Binh, Chairman of the provincial Wood and Handicraft Industry Association, said the association has helped with updating market information, developing a value supply chain and building Thien Tan industrial park, where wood, handicraft and support industries set up plants on 50 hectares.
The department forecast that 2016 will be a banner year for wood exporters thanks to further tariff cuts brought about by a series of signed free trade agreements.
The province's export turnover was estimated to reach over $14 billion in 2015.
Over the past five years, Dong Nai's economy has grown by an annual average of 12 per cent.
The locality hosted more than 1,200 foreign-invested projects from 42 countries and territories and over 19,500 domestic firms. — VNS