GERMANY - In 2018 German furniture exports increased by 2.2 percent compared to the previous year, to €10.9 billion.

According to Jan Kurth, managing director of the Association of the German Furniture Industry (VDM) this is the highest export value recorded to date. The export rate, of 32.4 percent, remained stable at the previous year’s level. Within Europe, deliveries to France - the most important export market - were by 6.6% to €1.500bn. Outside Europe, the USA remains the most important export market with an export value of €513.2m (+0.5%).

According to Kurth, furniture deliveries to the USA only increased marginally, however, due to the uncertain trading environment. A significantly greater increase compared to the preceding year was achieved in China, in contrast, at +14.7 percent to €336.7m. The majority of German furniture exports were delivered to the EU (70.3%), followed by the remaining European countries at a proportion of 13.3 percent, Asia at 8.3 percent and North America at 5.3 percent.

At a figure of €12.6bn, German furniture imports were down 0.7 percent on the previous year’s figure. Development in this regard slackened off over the course of the year. In the first quarter VDM had recorded a 1.6% increase in imports, which leveled off to an increase of 0.6 percent during the first half of the year. By the end of September imports had slipped into the negative zone at 0.9 percent, but this slackened off again slightly by the end of December.

Within the ten most important supplier countries, increases were recorded in Poland (+2.2% to €3.35bn), Turkey (+0.9% to €327.6m) and France, although imports from France increased at the most significant rate of 6.8 percent to €309.1m (289.5m). Imports from Italy, at a value of €799.1m, stagnated at the previous year’s level.