Due to the interruption caused by Covid, David - a buyer from the US had the opportunity to return to Ho Chi Minh City after 4 years to attend Hawa Expo - the largest furniture fair in Vietnam organized by 6 associations in early March.

"I was really surprised by the positive change. Businesses invested a lot in new products," David said. Without sharing specific contracts, this buyer commented that the business trip was "valuable and effective."

The US - the market that consumes more than half of Vietnam's wood and wood products - is gradually returning, leading to the recovery prospects of this industry this year. Statistics from Hawa Expo show that 36% of visitors to this fair come from the world's leading economy.

According to the General Department of Customs, in the first quarter of the year, wood and wood product exports reached more than 3.5 billion USD, an increase of more than 25% over the same period, of which the US market was nearly 1.9 billion USD.

Trading at the beginning of the year was favorable, but the future outlook for this market remains unpredictable .

According to the US Department of Commerce (DOC), consumption of interior and exterior related goods slowed down in March. Specifically, sales of building materials and garden equipment increased by 0.7%, but furniture decreased by 0.3%.

In addition, the Department of Trade Defense (Ministry of Industry and Trade) recently said it received information about the DOC extending the investigation into trade defense tax evasion on wooden cabinets imported from Vietnam.

According to the Ministry, regulations on the origin of raw wood in the US are becoming increasingly stricter. DOC is amending and supplementing 22 contents related to a number of regulations in anti-dumping and subsidy investigations.

This year, the wooden furniture industry aims to export 17.5 billion USD, meaning that on average each quarter it needs to sell nearly 4.4 billion USD abroad. The first three months of the year saw high growth, but the pressure on orders for the remaining quarters is not small.

In addition to continuing to monitor the retail sector and complying with the White House's import policies, experts believe there is still room for exploitation. Mr. Hoang Thang Long, representative of Divani Designs (USA), pointed out that the interior design sector of tourism and apartment projects is less dependent on the instability of the economy.

In 2026, the US will host the World Cup, requiring accommodation units to prepare to welcome guests, so the demand for furniture will certainly increase.

At the same time, Ms. Giovana Castellina, Director of Multi-Client Research at the Interior Market and Industry Consulting Research Organization CSIL in Milan (Italy), recommends that businesses need to expand their trading system outside the US and seek new product segments.

In fact, at the recent Hawa Expo, 75% of exhibitors signed contracts or memorandums of understanding, with a total value of over 115 million USD. In addition to American visitors, buyers from India, the EU, Japan, and Korea also flocked to see 500 businesses, 80% of which were Vietnamese suppliers, demonstrating their capabilities.

In this group, Japan maintained stable purchasing power, over 400 million USD in the first quarter. Export turnover to India was small, but grew more than double, over 31.2 million USD.

Mr. Nguyen Thanh Phong, Abella brand director, said their target markets are India, Cambodia, Mozambique... According to him, these are areas that do not have the conditions for raw material production, have limited construction skills, and need a complete interior construction solution.

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