The latest concepts in furniture making have also been introduced from Europe.

"When we visited furniture fairs in Europe, we saw LED lights were being used to improve furniture's function and also make life more colorful," Qian said.

In 2011, the output value of Shunde's furniture industry reached nearly 100 billion yuan ($16 billion) and more than 52 percent of its output was exported, according to Shunde Furniture Design Institute.

For China as a whole, the output volume of the furniture industry in the first 10 months of 2012 grew by only 5.15 percent, compared with 16 percent in 2011, China National Furniture Association reported.

Last year, the output value for Guangdong province alone surpassed 300 billion yuan, of which around two-thirds was for the domestic market, up 10 percent year-on-year. Exports grew 2 percent, compared to an average of 6 percent over the previous five years.

yangyangs@chinadaily.com.cn

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