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volatility in transport costs, and other supply problems forced months of this year.
furniture manufacturers and retailers to rethink their business EU imports from China were up only three percent in
strategies. 2023 to 833,000 tonnes but increased 59 percent to 331,000
Most furniture companies surveyed by CSIL in 2023 tonnes in the first four months this year. Imports of wooden

said they are actively working to shorten supply chains and furniture from China have increased very sharply into all the
increase dependence on local production to reduce risk and main EU markets this year including France, Germany, and
shorten time to market. Within Europe, Portugal, Italy, and the Netherlands.
Spain have particularly benefited from this trend.
EUDR to significantly impact Europe’s wooden furniture
Chinese wooden furniture recovers ground in Europe market
However, the latest Eurostat and UK trade data appears, at The sharp rise in wooden furniture imports from China by
first sight, to partially contradict this analysis. European countries since the start of 2023 is partly explained
The data shows that internal European trade in wooden by the fact that it follows a big decline in 2022 when Chinese

furniture has been slowing continuously since the start of exports were seriously impacted by rigorous lockdowns during
2023, very much in line with the wider decline in consumption. the pandemic.
It also shows that European exports of wooden furniture The accelerating rise in imports from China this year
to countries outside the region, after falling rapidly in 2022, may be partly related to EUDR as European importers build
have remained flat since the second quarter of 2023. But it stock before enforcement of that law is due to begin on 30
also shows that European imports from other parts of the December.
world have been increasing since the middle of last year. Recent news reports suggest that China’s government

Closer analysis of the data reveals that the recent growth has told the EU that it is not prepared to allow geolocation
in wooden furniture imports into the EU27+UK has been coordinates of harvest sites of regulated products (which
driven by China. Imports into Europe from China increased include all wooden furniture), as required by the EUDR,
by six percent to 1.25 million tonnes in 2023 and were up to be supplied with products exported from China, citing
by more than 50 percent at 480,000 tonnes in the first four security concerns.
months of this year. The EU has responded that imports without geolocation
In contrast imports from tropical countries fell by 23 coordinates will not be possible once EUDR is enforced and
percent to 430,000 tonnes in 2023 and were up only four that there will be no exceptions for any country, including
percent in the first four months of this year. China.

Imports from all other countries (mainly non-EU European
countries and Turkey) decreased nine percent to 600,000
tonnes in 2023 and increased by seven percent to 210,000 Nicholas A Toneli
tonnes in the January to April period this year.
Wooden furniture imports from China have increased both
into the UK, the largest single wooden furniture importing
country in Europe, and into the EU. UK imports from China

increased 13 percent to 417,000 tonnes in 2023 and were
up another 34 percent to 152,000 tonnes in the first four