The president of the Thai Furniture Industry Association called on the Thai government to widely support the industry and help the furniture industry to develop sustainably in the long term, and the president of the association said that the association hopes that Thai furniture manufacturers can produce more finished furniture products to increase the value of the industry, rather than selling furniture accessories or only supplying raw materials to consumers.

He said the government should encourage Thai manufacturers to use agricultural products as raw materials to produce furniture, and the government should also develop the furniture industry as an important part of the country's economy, just as it has developed the auto parts industry in the past.

Currently, sales of raw materials for furniture manufacturing in Thailand are twice as high as for finished furniture. "If we can produce more finished furniture, then the export value of the furniture industry will be higher," he said. ”

He said that Thailand's industry, finance and agriculture departments should support furniture manufacturers in the selection of raw materials, marketing and finance, and the government should provide low-interest loans to furniture manufacturers because they need to invest in technology and new machinery to increase production.

In the first 10 months of this year, Thailand's furniture exports increased by 13.8% to 103 billion baht (about 19,918.4 million yuan), more than 5% of the projected value. Exports of wood and wood products were worth 71.2 billion baht and furniture and accessories were worth 31.8 billion baht, with growth mainly driven by demand for new furniture markets in China, India, Australia and ASEAN.

He believes that after Thailand and India finalize a trade agreement, the market for Thai furniture exports to India will increase.

The United States and Japan are the largest buyers of Thai furniture, and Chinese consumers will buy more Thai furniture in the future. He said ASEAN accounts for 20 percent of Thailand's furniture exports, with Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia all having great potential. "This year, furniture exports to Vietnam have increased by 50 percent to 1.5 billion baht, making Vietnam the sixth largest market for Thai furniture exports," he said. ”

Thailand's furniture export sector is expected to grow 14 percent this year to 124 billion baht, as ASEAN buyers turn to Thai manufacturers for furniture due to higher labor costs in China.

"Thai furniture can be more attractive than Chinese products, but Thai producers need to adopt a more aggressive marketing strategy," he said. We have taken an aggressive marketing strategy in China, as Thai furniture becomes more and more popular with Chinese consumers. ”

Thai furniture manufacturers are also encouraged to participate in more trade fairs and matchmaking meetings in the ASEAN market.

The total furniture market in Thailand is expected to reach 200 billion baht this year and grow by 10% to 220 billion baht in 2017.