VIETNAM – The value of timber exports from Vietnam reached $ 479 million last December, totalling USD 5,370 million in 2013.

The figure represents an increase of 15.2 percent from 2012, reported the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. United States, China, Japan and South Korea remained the main importing countries.

Vietnamese wood industry has reported strong growth in the last decade, with an annual increased in value of exports of 15.5 percent. In 2012, the category reached USD 4,600 million in foreign sales representing an annual increase of 18 percent.

Despite the upward trend in the volume of exports, the industry still faces several problems, due to the strong dependence on imported raw materials. Local raw material resources have failed to meet the demand for processors in volume and quality. Therefore, purchases of  raw materials from abroad have grown at an annual rate of 12.1 percent over the period 2007-2012.

Ensuring wood supply is the main priority for the sector, according to the secretary general of the Forestry Association, Nguyen Ton Quyen. Under the national development strategy for the forestry industry, by 2020, the sector should be able to meet domestic demand for wood as well as to supply the export market.