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Report from
North America
US hardwood plywood imports fell in 2018
The volume of US imports of hardwood plywood declined
by 5% in December, ending 2018 with a total volume for
the year of 2.66 million cubic metres, down 10% from
2017.
December was the strongest month of the year for imports
from China, up 62% from November. But the figures are
still well below last December¡¯s as the volume of Chinese
hardwood plywood coming to the US. ended the year
down more than 70%.
Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, and Cambodia all showed
gains of more than 50% in 2018, replacing market share
previously held by China. Despite the decline in the
volume of imports, the value of hardwood plywood
imports for 2018 ended at US$1.9 billion, which was up
10% from 2017.
Sawn tropical hardwood imports fell in 2018
US imports of sawn tropical hardwood ended 2018
relatively flat. The total volume of imports in 2018 was
down 9% from the previous year.
Imports of balsa, mahogany, virola, and acajou d¡¯Afrique
all fell by more than 20% in 2018. On the other hand,
imports of Jatoba nearly doubled in 2018 while Keruing
imports rose by over 30%.
Among the top US trading partners, imports from Ecuador
fell 23%, imports from Cameroon were down 20% and
imports from Brazil dropped 5% in 2018. In contrast,
imports from Malaysia rose by 40% in 2018.
Imports of sawn tropical hardwood from Canadian
followed the downward trend, falling 13% in 2018.
Imports of sapelli were down 34%; virola, imbuia and
balsa imports were down 26% and iroko imports fell 50%.
December imports of sawn tropical hardwood dropped
22% year on year. For the year, 2018 imports from Canada
closed at a total of US$17.3 million for the year.
Strong December for tropical veneer imports
US imports of tropical hardwood veneer grew by 39% in
December, ending a string of monthly declines and this
lifted 2018 imports well above those in 2017.
Imports of tropical veneers in 2018 expanded 26% over
the previous year, with Italy, China, and India showing the
greatest increases. Imports from key African countries
(Ghana, Cameroon and Cote d¡¯Ivoire) all fell in 2018.
 
Flooring imports strong in 2018
While flat in December, US imports of hardwood flooring
ended 2018 up 44% at a value of US$74.7 million.
Imports from China (up 71%), Malaysia (up 79%) and
Brazil (up 50%), all contributed to the rise. Imports from
Indonesia fell by 20% for the year.
Imports of assembled flooring were up by 4% in
December and grew by 11% in 2018. China and Indonesia
saw the greatest gains while imports from Brazil fell by
71% for the year.
Moulding imports rise in December
Despite a sharp rise in December, US imports of
hardwood mouldings ended the year down from
2017.Moulding imports atUS$177 million in 2018 were
down 4% from the previous year.
A more than 20% drop in imports from Canada
contributed to the loss. Imports from Malaysia rebounded
from a weak November to end the year ahead of 2017
totals by 8%. Imports from China ended the year up by
6%.
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