2021 Is Coming, What Are the New Developments in the Home Furnishing Industry?

1. The total retail sales of furniture in China in 2020 is 159.8 billion RMB

From January to December in 2020, the retail sales of furniture in China reached 159.8 billion yuan, down by 7% year on year.In December, retail sales of furniture nationwide were 19.4 billion yuan, up 0.4 percent from the same period last year.

2. China's exports will grow by 3.6% in 2020, and the trade surplus will hit a 5-year hig

For the entire year of 2020, China’s export value in U.S. dollars increased by 3.6% from the previous year, an increase of approximately 3.1 percentage points from 2019, and its imports fell by 1.1% from the previous year, which was a decrease of approximately 1.6 percentage points from 2019. The annual trade surplus was US$535.03 billion, a new record since 2016.

3. New Epidemic outbreak in many home stores in the United States

American Fox News reported that various home retail stores and storage centers in the United States have become the hardest hit areas of the epidemic. In the past 12 months, the US epidemic caused more than 63,000 deaths, and the US media said that January would be a nightmare.

According to reports, in Los Angeles alone, several major home building materials retail giants, including Home Depot, Target, Amazon, and Costco, have already had about 850 employees diagnosed with COVID-9. Amazon's cases are mainly distributed in the company's warehouse center, while the cases of the other three retailers are mainly concentrated in first-line stores.

4. Production of sawn timber and board products in Russia declines in 2020

According to data from the Russian Federal Bureau of Statistics, in the past 11 months, the total output of sawn timber and board products of domestic forestry enterprises was 26.4 million cubic meters, a decrease of 4.3% compared with last year. In the first 11 months of 2020, the output of wooden windows and window frames fell by more than 16% to 407,000 square meters. The output of wooden doors and door frames remained at the level of 2019, and the output in the first 11 months of 2020 was 12.8 million square meters. In addition, according to the latest data from the Russian Federal Statistical Office, from January to November 2020, Russian plywood production fell by 4.5%, and the total production volume was 3.6 million cubic meters. Fibreboard production fell by 7.3% to 585 million cubic meters. Particleboard production fell by nearly 3% to 8.9 million cubic meters.

5. U.S. upholstered furniture flammability standards will be implemented in June 2021

The U.S. Congress passed a law mandating compliance with California's flammability standards for upholstered furniture nationwide.

Starting June 25, 2021, all upholstered seating furniture imported or sold in the United States must meet the flammability test specified in California Technical Bulletin 117-2013 (TB 117-2013).

Labeling requirements: All upholstered furniture must be affixed with a permanent label, and the label must contain a statement "Meet the flammability requirements of the US CPSC for upholstered furniture"

Bedding is exempted. The law will not apply to bedding, including mattresses and bed frames (which are already subject to separate federal flammability standards).