Since mid-March buyers from the United States and Europe have moved to stop buying, cancel, or delay orders from Vietnamese wood processing and manufacturing enterprises, causing a staggering 80% fall in order numbers.

Vietnamese wood processing and manufacturing enterprises are facing plenty
of difficulties amid the ongoing COVID-19 epidemic

Statistics released by the Vietnam Timber and Forest Product Association, indicate that the five largest exporters of Vietnamese wood and timber products, the US, the EU, Japan, the Republic of Korea, and China, account for over 90% of the nation’s overall export market.

The impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has caused a number of nations to impose lockdown orders, resulting in many Vietnamese wood processing firms being inundated by notifications from buyers regarding cancellations or delays.

According to a preliminary report compiled by local wood associations and wood processing companies, 81% of businesses have received notices from buyers looking to cancel orders or to delay their purchases.

Orders coming from the Japanese, Korean, and Chinese markets have also suffered a drop of between 60% and 80%, while a massive 96% of local enterprise have been under pressure when it comes to interest rates and re-paying loans.

This trend looks set to continue as many key markets globally are displaying negative signals for the coming quarters, with several businesses having to face a sharp increase in the price of wood materials by between US$10 and US$20 per m3 of raw wood in order to maintain both the remaining orders and keep smaller ones.

This will cause a significant number of domestic wood processing firms to halt operations, lay off workers, and go bankrupt if they receive no support from the state.

In addition to facing difficulties in terms of production and customers proposing deferment of deliveries and payments, the biggest challenge now facing businesses is how to manage debt payments due between April and June. This issue needs to be immediately tackled with the collaboration of local banks otherwise many enterprises face the possibility of going insolvent.