Furniture exports went up by 23 percent, the minister said.
The head of the forestry, timber and wood-processing cluster within the Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK), Zdravko Jelcic, said that 65 percent of production in this sector was exported, with the export-import coverage at 162 percent.
Jelcic said that the recession had caused the loss of 7,000 jobs in this sector and a 30-percent plunge in sales.
This industry's representatives expect the adoption of a five-year operational plan which may redefine the export strategy and increase twofold the current annual export of US$ 755 million in two years, he said.