China Furniture Exhibition learned that the 2025 Furniture Industry Import and Export Report comprehensively reviewed the foreign trade development of China's furniture industry in 2025. That year, the industry operated in a complex and volatile international trade environment while simultaneously accelerating its industrial transformation.

Data shows that in 2025, China's furniture industry accumulated export value of US$67.81 billion, down 5.9% year-on-year from 2024 and 2.2% from 2023. The quarterly export trend showed significant divergence: Q1 and Q2 exports fell by 8.3% and 5.2% respectively compared to 2024, yet both achieved positive growth compared to the same period in 2023; Q3 saw a modest year-on-year increase of 0.6%, marking the only quarter with positive growth for the entire year; Q4 export value reached US$17.633 billion, down 9.4% year-on-year, representing the largest quarterly decline of the year.

The import market continued to contract. In 2025, accumulated furniture imports totaled US$1.531 billion, down 5.4% year-on-year, marking the third consecutive year of import decline. Q4 imports amounted to US$404 million, down 1.8% and 8.3% compared to Q4 2024 and Q4 2023 respectively. Notably, the import decline in 2025 narrowed compared to the previous two years, indicating some easing of downward pressure in the industry's import market.

In terms of export market structure, Asia, North America, and Europe remain the core export markets for Chinese furniture, with the three regions combined accounting for 83.8% of total exports. Asia led the way with export value of US$22.466 billion, representing 33.1% of total exports. In 2025, the top 10 export destinations for Chinese furniture were the United States, United Kingdom, Japan, Australia, Germany, Malaysia, South Korea, Canada, Netherlands, and Singapore, collectively accounting for 55.9% of national furniture exports. The United States ranked as the largest export market, with a share as high as 22.7%.

Key overseas markets showed mixed performance, with some traditional markets experiencing significant export declines. South Korea recorded the steepest drop, with 2025 exports falling 31.0% and 21.6% compared to 2023 and 2024 respectively; the United States saw year-on-year declines of 14.4% and 16.4%; and Malaysia recorded declines of 14.6% and 12.0%. Meanwhile, the United Kingdom and Netherlands markets maintained growth, with the Netherlands achieving positive growth for two consecutive years and rising to the ninth position among export destinations in 2025, signaling that China's furniture overseas market layout is gradually becoming more balanced and diversified.

Domestic import and export regions demonstrated differentiated development trends. On the export side, Zhejiang and Guangdong remained the core powerhouse provinces, while Shanghai, Liaoning, and Xinjiang showed particularly strong export growth momentum. On the import side, Europe served as the primary source region, with Italy and Germany firmly holding the top two positions among import source countries. Domestically, Shanghai ranked first in imports, while Fujian, Shandong, and Henan saw steady growth in import scale. The trade structure continued to optimize, with general trade consistently maintaining its dominant position, while emerging trade methods such as cross-border e-commerce continued to unleash vitality. Export categories were led by seating furniture, wooden furniture, and metal furniture, with product structure continuously upgrading. This multi-dimensional structural adjustment has enabled the furniture industry to demonstrate remarkable adaptability and industrial resilience amid external pressures.

Regarding the 2026 industry outlook, the report indicates that while international market uncertainties will persist, the fundamental positive trajectory of China's economy remains unchanged. Leveraging the development opportunities presented by the launch of the "15th Five-Year Plan", China's furniture industry will continue to advance branding, green transformation, and high-end upgrading, further enhancing its discourse power and influence in the global furniture industry.

Source: zhongjuwenhua