LAHORE: A United States furniture producers’ delegation, currently on a visit to Pakistan to explore local furniture market, has shown keen interest in Pakistan handmade furniture market and underlined the need to enhance collaboration with the Pakistan Furniture Council (PFC) to promote furtinure business between the two countries. Briefing the delegation about the potential of handmade furniture on Friday, PFC Chief Executive Mian Kashif Ashfaq said there was significant potential for the promotion of Pak-US furniture trade. He said that there were plenty of opportunities to increase furniture export volume to the US due to an upward trend, as the demand for furniture and wooden products were on the rise in the US and European markets. “Only US furniture demand at the manufacturers’ level is predicted to reach $59 billion in 2021,” he said, adding that the sector needed a large number of skilled workers to meet the rising demand. Mian Kashif added that the real estate industry in the US was expected to boost the home furniture market in the next few years. There has been a significant rise in the number of women joining the workforce and living independently. As a result, there is a rising need for service apartments and single storey houses there.” He added, “The furniture industry caters to various categories and trends that change so quickly, and it is vital for us to offer items that reflect new trends. The PFC will work closely with trend experts to create new items to ensure we cover these lifestyles, and our goal for new intros is to offer the perfect item reflecting consumers’ demands.” “We are seen as suppliers of quality home and office furniture. Indeed, US buyers often visit the PFC Interiors Pakistan to directly source their requirements of high-quality functional furniture suited to US consumers’ tastes. “They get a preview of the latest designs at the show which was held in Karachi, Islamabad and Lahore expo centres.” Published in Daily Times, February 10th2018.