EU trade in wood furniture rises in 2014

Source:
ITTO
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The sharp rise in the EU trade surplus in wooden furniture between 2010 and 2013 came to a halt last year as the pace of increase in EU exports slowed while there was an upturn in imports.

EU28 wooden furniture exports were valued at €8.43 billion in 2014, 2.3% more than in 2013. EU28 imports of wooden furniture were valued at €5.11 billion in 2014, 10.4% greater than the previous year.

The EU 28's trade surplus in wooden furniture fell 8.2% from €3.62 billion in 2013 to €3.32 billion in 2014.

Nevertheless, the trade surplus remains very high compared to the boom years prior to the financial crises when European manufacturers were focusing most of their attention on domestic sales and external suppliers, notably in China, were making significant inroads into the market.

Putting these figures into perspective it will be seen that EU external trade in wooden furniture is relatively small compared to total consumption, which is about €50 billion per year most of which is from domestic manufacturers.

Only about one quarter of wooden furniture consumed in the EU member states ever crosses a national boundary. Total internal trade in wooden furniture between EU countries has averaged around €15 billion per year since 2009.

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