The U.S. International Trade Commission recently released a report outlining the competitive climate the wood flooring and hardwood plywood industries are facing from both domestic and foreign importers. The study, titled "Wood Flooring and Hardwood Plywood: COmpetitive Conditions Affecting the U.S. Industries," found that the importers' share of the U.S. market rose from one-third to one-half from 2002 to 2007, with China rising to become the main competitor. Additionally, the value of imports doubled.
The report also found that imports grew faster than U.S. production in the five-year span covered, and noted that illegal logging "contributed to increased production and consumption of these products."
The ITC noted that this report is a "general factfinding investigation [covering] matters related to tariffs or trade." While this report does not affect policy, historically the results of these types of studies are used when creating new policies addressing tariffs and trade conditions.
The full report is available at http://hotdocs.usitc.gov/docs/pubs/332/pub4032.pdf, by e-mailing pubrequest@usitc.gov or calling (202) 205-2000.
