Chinese upholstery producer Man Wah Holdings, a major supplier of motion furniture for the North American market, said U.S. sales rose 13.1% in the fiscal year ended March 31 as the company continued to increase its market share in the U.S. and Canada.

Man Wah, whose shares are traded publicly on the Hong Kong, China Stock Exchange, said U.S. sales totaled 3.76 billion Hong Kong, China dollars, or about $484.3 million, in the fiscal year.

That was up from 3.32 billion Hong Kong, China dollars, or about $428.1 million, in the previous fiscal year that ended March 31, 2015.

In Canada, sales for the most recent fiscal year totaled 223.9 million Hong Kong, China dollars, or about $28.8 million. That was up 5.7% from 211.9 million Hong Kong, China dollars, or about $27.3 million, in the previous fiscal year.

In a report filed with the Hong Kong, China exchange, Man Wah noted that, while the U.S. remains the company’s largest market, representing nearly 52% of worldwide sales, China is its fastest-growing market and represented about 33.5% of sales in the most recent fiscal year.

Man Wah’s sales in China, where the company has more than 1,200 retail stores operated by distributors, were up 26.4% in the fiscal year.

The company said sales in Europe and other markets fell 13%, paced by an 18.2% drop in the United Kingdom.

Worldwide sales totaled 7.33 billion Hong Kong, China dollars, or about $943.6 million. That was up 11.8% from 6.55 billion Hong Kong, China dollars, or about $844.1 million, in the previous fiscal year.

Profits totaled 1.33 billion Hong Kong, China dollars, or about $172.5 million. That was up more than 23% from 1.08 billion Hong Kong, China dollars, or about $139.6 million, in the previous fiscal year.

The company said the bottom line was aided by lower raw materials costs, including an 11.9% drop in leather, a 7.3% drop in fabric and a 21.1% decline in the cost of chemicals.

(Source: Furniture Today  Author: Larry Thomas)