KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 14 — Eight Malaysian furniture suppliers clinched sales totalling RM44 million during a Specialised Marketing Mission (SMM) to Mumbai from Dec 1 to 5.

The SMM was organised by the Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE) to boost exports of Malaysian furniture products globally, especially to India.

The event also provided Malaysian companies an opportunity to meet with India’s largest retailers as well as project owners.

“India has been identified as a high-potential market for Malaysian furniture players as there is a growing middle class and an increasing amount of expendable income contributing to a rapid growth in India’s furniture retail,” said Matrade in a statement today.

In 2014, India was the eighth largest consumer of furniture and among the top five retail markets in the world.

Matrade said India’s imports of furniture from Malaysia have grown 37.5 per cent to RM270.1 million in the first 10 months of this year, due to the competitiveness of Malaysian products in India along with the increased growth of organised furniture retail.

Malaysia was the second largest furniture exporter to India for this period after China. — Bernama