Importers Incur losses As Chinese Firm Allegedly Hijack Wood Importation Business, Create Unfair Pricing
A Chinese firm; Shouguang Dasen Wood Co. Ltd has been accused of conering her Nigerian importers and customers in the importation of engineered wood products, including MDF, HDF and Marine Board, through over-importation of the product and crashing the market price, thereby sending Nigerian importers and freight forwarders out of jobs.
The MDF (Medium-Density Fibreboard) and HDF (High-Density Fibreboard) are engineered wood products made from wood fibers compressed with resin, while marine board is an High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) plastic designed for water-intensive environments.
These finishing wood products according to findings, have since taken over Nigeria’s booming construction and interior décor industry and is attracted foreign incursion into the market.
An importer and businessman, Christian Igwe in Onitsha Market, Anambra State on Thursday raised an alarm, alleging that importers are now cancelling their importation orders because they are being run out of business.
Igwe said the matter would be brought to the attention of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) which is the primary agency responsible for promoting fair competition in Nigeria’s markets, as well as addressing anti-competitive practices and regulating unfair pricing.
Speaking, he said “As importers, we are buying from Shouguang Dasen Wood Co. Ltd in China, but the Chinese company are now importing into Nigeria and selling cheaper than the Nigerian importers they are selling to in China, thereby taking Nigerians out of business, we want to call the government’s attention into this.
“If they are selling at same price with other dealers, we dont mind, because the market is big enough for everybody. But because they are having access to interest free loan in their country, they have tax returns, and they are now coming into the market here to slash the price, thereby sending legitimate Nigerian importers back to their villages.
I know more than thirty that have so far stopped importation because they couldn’t compete.
“When you import from them, let’s say 1,000 items, they would on their own bring in 5,000 of the items, they have their warehouse in Sagamu, Ogun State. Their plan is to come into Nigeria, crash the price and become the sole representative, then chase Nigerians out of the business” he said
A devastated Igwe sighted a case study of one of his friend who recently canceled an order of Finishing Woods from China because he could not compete nor sell the product at the ridiculous price.
“My friends are crying, I have about two of them that recently canceled their importation order from China because they cannot compete and lose their money.
“If the business is booming and they had allowed the order to come in by December 2025 to January 2026, he would have made N300million, calling it off now means that I am losing this sum of money.
“The underlining word here, is that they are coming to Nigeria to sell cheaper than what they sold to Nigerian importers in China. If they are here selling at the same price, we have no problem, the sky is big enough to accommodate all birds” he reiterated.
He also added that Chinese and other foreigners are also taking over the cargo clearing business at the Nigerian port, even as he urged the Federal government through the Nigeria Customs Service to stop licensing foreigners to practice freight forwarding at Nigerian ports.
“What they do is to use a Nigerian indigene as a front. He is the one carrying clearing document around and signing signatures, but anytime there is need for negotiation, the foreigners would come into the port to do their business and leave.
“We have told the Customs Comptroller-General that there is need for them to stop licensing foreigners to do business at Nigerian ports.
As a Nigerian, you cannot enter into Benin Republic Port close to us here, they would ask you to call one of their indigenous person to do the job” he concluded.
