DHA eNews - ITC Releases Economic Impact Of U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement
On April 22, the U.S. International Trade Commission unanimously affirmed that the domestic cabinet and vanity industry has been injured by Chinese imports. The American Kitchen Cabinet Alliance will now begin its fight against unfairly traded Chinese cabinet imports as the ITC begins antidumping and countervailing duty investigations.
The ITC has issued a report assessing the impact of the three-country trade agreement on the U.S. economy and the interests of U.S. consumers.
China’s exports to the U.S. soared 14.2% in March, far exceeding the predicted increase of 7.3%. Imports fell 7.6%, suggesting domestic demand remains weak. In March, China's trade surplus with the U.S. was $32.64 billion.
The export value of Vietnamese forest products increased by 17.8% in the first four months of 2019, reaching a total value of $3.278 billion. The U.S., Japan, EU, China, and the Republic of Korea were the largest importers. There are now 1,863 Vietnamese firms that export forest products.
Countertop manufacturer Cambria filed antidumping and countervailing duty petitions against Chinese quartz manufacturers, requesting a tariff of nearly 456% to counteract alleged dumping. The Department of Commerce and ITC have heard initial evidence and will issue preliminary rulings soon.
Sign up now to join us on Sunday for this year's Decorative Hardwoods Association Spring Conference & Annual Meeting in gorgeous Santa Rosa, CA, May 5 ‑ 7. Our speakers - U.S. Customs & Border Protection, Cal Fire, legal and design experts, and more - will show us how tariff enforcement, antidumping and countervailing duties, new technologies, and design trends will affect our businesses this year and next.
NAHB researchers reported that most home buyers and owners prefer white kitchen cabinets, followed by medium and dark brown. A survey of companies exhibiting at February's Kitchen and Bath Industry Show revealed that frameless cabinets and paint finishes are leading trends.
In the U.S., every year, private landowners grow 43% more trees than they harvest.
The National Forest Foundation is working with the U.S. Forest Service to restore forest cover lost to wildfires, insect infestation, disease, and severe weather. Last year, NFF planted 2.6 million trees; this year, NFF will nearly double its previous record.
A nonprofit will convert 100,000 acres into a wildlife habitat. The Nature Conservancy acquired the forestland, located in southeastern Kentucky and northeastern Tennessee, and will manage it as a sustainable, working forest.
A recent University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign study of 3,086 of the 3,103 counties in the continental U.S. has linked green space – specifically, forested areas – to better health for those who live nearby.
Officials in Maine have announced a formal quarantine to slow the spread of the emerald ash borer in the state. The quarantine includes all of York County and the northeastern corner of Aroostook County.
Not a single one of the Forest 500, a group of companies and financial institutions with the highest potential to prevent tropical deforestation, is on track to eliminate commodity-driven deforestation from their supply chains by 2020. Half of the group committed to doing so by 2020.