Local furniture makers are meeting 90 percent of the domestic demand, market players said yesterday.

“Presently Bangladesh's market size is around Tk 18,000 crore, of which only 10 percent is being imported,” KM Akhtaruzzaman, chairman of Akhtar Group, told reporters at a briefing at the office of the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB).

The EPB organised the briefing to announce the inauguration of a three-day 5th Bangladesh Furniture and Interior Decor Expo today at International Convention City Bashundhara.

All of the country's leading furniture brands and home furnishing companies are participating in the fair that will remain open for all from 10am to 9pm.

The EPB, Bangladesh Furniture Exporters Association, Bangla Kraft, Bangladesh Jute Diversified Products Manufacturers and Exporters Association, and Bangladesh Furniture Industries Owners Association in cooperation with Bangladesh Jute Diversification Centre are organising the show. Businesspeople said the market has been growing despite limitations in the availability of raw materials and high import duty. “We have to import raw materials of furniture paying 50 to 60 percent duty,” said Selim H Rahman, managing director of Hatil Complex.

He also said, with this high import duty, exporters were lagging behind others in the global market though the government provided them with an incentive of 15 percent on the export value. Rahman, also president of Bangladesh Furniture Industries Owners Association, called for quick initiatives to promote the furniture sector.

The government is trying to expand the market and as part of that move the EPB, in association with the private sector, has been organising the expo for the last four years.

“The furniture market is not very large now; we are trying to expand the sector,” said Bijoy Bhattacharjee, vice-chairman of the EPB.

He said the use of furniture among Bangladeshis was comparatively low, so the local market has a big opportunity as people's income level was rising.The EPB statistics show that export earnings from the furniture sector were $49.79 million in 2016-17, up from $46.25 million in the previous year.