CEBU CITY – Having learned a hard lesson during the peak of the global financial crisis that mainly hit the United States in 2008 and 2009, furniture exporters in Cebu are now bent on focusing their promotional efforts within Asia as their new market.

“We are looking at more intra-Asia trade, as Asia has been least affected by the crisis. China and India are now starting to be interesting markets for us,” Cebu Furniture Industries Foundation (CFIF) President Angela Paulin said in her presentation during the Philippine Trade Policy Forum last April 6.

Even as the United States economy, the industry’s biggest market, has posted an economic growth rate of 5.6 percent in the last quarter in 2009, Paulin stressed the furniture industry cannot be “overly optimistic.”

“The real growth rate, which has been reported at 1.8 percent in the last quarter, is not really enough to create jobs,” she said.

Paulin added, “We practice cautious optimism with 15 million Americans still unemployed and increasing foreclosures.”

According to Paulin the local furniture industry must double its efforts to attract new markets and strengthen their competitive advantage, which are design and material innovation, quality, reliability in delivery, and professional business practices.

“We are working with the government to effectively engage in intra-Asia trade because these markets are least affected by the crisis,” she said.

CFIF would need the government’s support in terms of trade promotion, innovation, and market intelligence.

Paulin said the industry is also looking at a new positioning strategy in the area of green products.

The European Commission earlier announced it has released 1 million euros or approximately P65 million worth of grant for Cebu-based small and medium enterprise (SME) players, including exporters, to help facilitate the “greening” of Cebu industries.

If the industry positions itself in the area of green products, Paulin said this will propel Cebu as the destination of sustainable furnishings, furniture and fashion accessory.

Meanwhile, Paulin lauded the report from the Bureau of Customs in Cebu (BoC-Cebu) which showed that the demand for Cebu’s furniture exports registered a 10 percent growth in the first two months of the year, which industry players consider a good indication that the global economy is now in the uptrend.

The BoC report revealed that in January this year, demand rose to 10.3 percent with local furniture exporters shipping 634 containers out of the Port of Cebu, compared to only 575 containers shipped in the same period last year.