(China Africa Trade Research Center News) Africa has 1.13 billion residents, with a per capita GNP of about 1700 US dollars, and the total household consumption in Africa is 140 billion US dollars. As a result of the increase in real income, consumer demand has grown rapidly over the past decade.

        According to relevant figures, in 2018, Africa's furniture consumption reached US $9.8 billion, with a per capita consumption of US $8. The main markets where furniture consumption exceeds US $500 million are South Africa, Nigeria, Algeria, Egypt, Morocco and Sudan. North Africa, West Africa and South Africa are the main consumption areas, with a high per capita consumption of furniture.

        There are 59 metropolitan areas in Africa with a population of more than 1 million. Although the government is unstable and the level of infrastructure is relatively poor, the development of urban center and the increasing diversification of economy provide unlimited possibilities for the development of furniture market.

        In recent years, a large number of investments have been made in real estate, tourism, hotel industry, culture and entertainment industry, which are driving the demand for furniture industry.

        In 2017, Africa's total imports of furniture were about US $3 billion. About 32% of furniture in Africa is imported. Southern Africa and North Africa are the regions with high import volume in Africa.

        If the proportion of imports in the total consumption of furniture is higher in East Africa, 47% of the furniture consumption comes from foreign suppliers, while the consumption in North Africa is 26%.

        In the south, the largest importer of furniture is South Africa, mainly from China, Germany and Italy. South Africa imports about 34% of the country's total furniture consumption.

        In North Africa, Morocco is the largest importer of furniture, mainly from China, Spain, France and Italy. Next are Algeria, Egypt and Libya. Morocco imports about half of the country's furniture, ranking second * among African countries. About 45% of furniture imports come from China, followed by Italy and Turkey.

        It is reported that the total output value of African furniture is 7.5 billion US dollars. It is estimated that in 2020, the actual consumption of furniture will increase by 2.4%. Only 10 per cent of furniture made in Africa is exported, mainly to Egypt, South Africa, Morocco and Tunisia. These African countries have good development potential in both internal consumption and export of furniture industry. (Editor: China Africa Trade Research Center)