European Union's new wooden furniture export costs

On March 25, news from the Municipal Foreign Economic and Trade Commission sent the EU recently issued a new certification requirement that all wood products exported to the European Union must have FSC certification (Forest Certification), making the emerging home industry, the main force that has just emerged, face challenges. . In the interview, the Commercial Daily reporter learned that due to this, the furniture export enterprises in the city faced a substantial increase in production costs, narrowing profit margins and weakening their price advantage.

Dynamic: The new European Union regulations are implemented this month in the EU's directive to show that in order to further curb deforestation, encourage legal timber trade, promote sustainable forest management, and standardize the EU market's participation in timber trading companies, etc. This mandatory regulation.

In the directive, it was mentioned that wood products made of wood require 100% legality or FSC certification. Entering European Union's timber and wood products, all manufacturers on its production, processing, and sales chains must submit basic information on the legality of the source of the wood, such as the origin of the wood, the country and the forest, the volume and weight of the wood, and the name and address of the log supplier. The scope is mainly applicable to wood and wood products produced within the European Union and imported from countries or regions outside the European Union.

“This directive is in fact a deepening and detailed “EU Law on Wood and Wood Products” passed by the European Parliament and the European Council in 2010. It is also a new “green barrier” for exporters.” Yesterday The secretary-general of the Chongqing Furniture Industry Association, Li Chengda, said in an interview with the People's Daily that from a global perspective, only about 10% of the FSC-certified timber is available, while in the domestic market, less than 1% of the wood certified in the market is also available. "Another problem is that the measurement standards proposed by the EU are not mutually recognized in other countries. For enterprises, it is difficult to obtain legitimacy."

It has been learned that Chongqing furniture companies have been focusing on the domestic domestic market. In recent years, some companies have begun to “go global” and have turned their attention to overseas markets. This was particularly evident in the last year. The Daily News reporter learned from the Chongqing Customs yesterday that there are currently about 10 companies involved in the export of Chongqing furniture industry, but the growth rate is rapid. According to statistics, in 2012, Chongqing's furniture exports soared. The annual export of furniture and parts reached 2.18 billion U.S. dollars, an increase of 7.5 times year-on-year, and it was mainly exported to Europe, America, Southeast Asia and other countries and regions.

Impact: The weakening of the price advantage of enterprises The impact of the EU's new directives on the city's business? In an interview, many industry sources told the Commercial Daily that this new “environmental directive” will directly lead to a significant increase in production costs and profit margins. Narrowing, weakening price advantage, or will cause some companies to regret the EU market.

Tan Qiangrong, head of Gaotian Industry and Trade Co., Ltd., gave a report to the reporter of the Business Daily: “For wood with certified wood, the company will generally issue two different prices. Usually, the price difference of environmentally friendly materials is about 5%, if it is solid wood. For materials, the spread is generally above 10%.” He said that according to the new certification requirements, the company will bear the cost increase of 5% to 10%. "This part of the increased costs will be internal digestion, if not digested, can only be transferred to the terminal market, which in turn makes the company's price advantage weakened."

Tang Tao, the head of another furniture export company, believes that after the implementation of the new EU regulations, the number of raw materials that have passed the FSC Forest Supply Certification will be relatively small, which will lead to additional cost for the company, as well as additional certification costs. “For us, the price advantage has significantly weakened.” He said that the company is currently looking for partners in Southeast Asia to cultivate new growth points in the market.

"Execution of the new directive means that the threshold for the export of wood products such as furniture and flooring will be greatly increased. This is not optimistic for companies interested in opening up export channels." Li Chengda believes that wood household export enterprises are especially Small floor exporters will bear the brunt of this, and may even force related companies to withdraw from the European market.

Response: Multi-sectors open up markets to reduce risk The relevant person in charge of the Foreign Economic and Trade Commission stated that the implementation of the new regulations has a greater tendency to set up trade barriers. According to the source, for those export enterprises that are interested in further cultivating the EU market, they should flexibly adjust suppliers of raw materials as soon as possible and re-select raw materials that meet certification requirements in order to meet the requirements of the new standard.

The person also suggested that due to the financial crisis, the lack of recovery in international trade, protectionism has resurfaced, and the risks faced by exporting companies are more complex than in the past. If they want to remain invincible in the international market competition, they are most likely to avoid it. Hanging on a tree, in addition to efforts to maintain key export markets and expand traditional markets, it is necessary to vigorously expand emerging or potential markets, optimize the structure of export markets, and increase product added value.