Furniture Exports Suffer Due to Tariffs

Furniture exports from Jalisco have suffered due to factors such as the imposition of U.S. tariffs and the strengthening of the peso against the dollar, which has led to declines of between 8% and 10%, according to Roberto Quiñones, coordinator of the Exhibitions Committee of the Jalisco Furniture Manufacturers Association (AFAMJAL).

“We have to admit that it's difficult for the furniture export sector, as a whole, to compete. The export sector has indeed seen a decline of between 8 and 10 percent,” he emphasized.

However, Quiñones clarified that the tariff policy of our northern neighbor also presents an opportunity for local companies. “Everything has an impact, and everything has its benefits; they're imposing a tax on us, but the tax on China is even higher,” Quiñones emphasized, explaining that even though manufacturers have faced increases in the costs of their raw materials, most companies have absorbed those costs to avoid being pushed out of the market.

Jalisco Governor Pablo Lemus Navarro has announced that he will ask the federal Ministry of Finance and Economy to step up enforcement operations to combat the unfair trade in imported furniture that is falsely marketed as domestic products.

“I am confident that both agencies will work to strengthen the Mexican and Jalisco furniture industries and prevent the misrepresentation of furniture that actually comes from other countries—primarily China—and is sold as domestically produced furniture,” said Lemus Navarro.

According to AFAMJAL President Mercedes Abundis, the furniture industry in Jalisco employs more than 25,000 people.