HCM City (VNA) – The Vietnam InternationalFurniture and Home Accessories Fair (VIFA-EXPO) returned to Ho Chi Minh City onits 11th edition, bringing together 350 domestic and foreignexhibitors.

The expo is underway at the Saigon Exhibition andConvention Centre (SECC) from March 7-10, featuring about 2,000 booths run byfurniture and home décor companies throughout Vietnam, international furniture,home décor and handicraft manufacturers and traders from all over the world,and craft villages, cooperatives and handicraft enterprises.

The event was held by the city’s Department ofIndustry and Trade and the Handicraft and Wood Industry Association of HCM City(HAWA).

The trade fair attracted a large number of foreignexhibitors, many of which have big timber and accessories industries such asSingapore, Taiwan (China), the US, Australia, Russia, Canada, China, Denmark,Ireland, Italy and the Republic of Korea, according to HAWA President NguyenQuoc Khanh.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Deputy Minister ofAgriculture and Rural Development Ha Cong Tuan said forestry has become one ofVietnam’s important economic sectors as wood and timber products are the sixthbiggest hard currency earner of the country.

Vietnam’s wood and timber products ranked fifth in theworld, accounting for 6 percent of the global market share, and led SoutheastAsia, he noted.

Tuan added that global demand for woodenfurniture will increase by 3.5 percent this year so Vietnamese producers needto focus more on branding and ramp up trade promotion to expand their market

In the firsttwo months of this year, Vietnam exported wood and timber products worth 1.48billion USD to 38 markets, a year-on-year rise of 38.3 percent.

Strong hikeswere recorded in Switzerland (508 percent), Finland (486.5 percent), Turkey(187.6 percent), Saudi Arabia (187.4 percent), Malaysia (138 percent), and theCzech Republic (104.8 percent).-VNA