Port-of-Entry

The General View: November 2021 hard-surface import values slid back by 4% from October, but the $433.2 million is 10 percent ahead of November 2020 – and a stunning 30% more than the same month in 2019. The Expected: Quartz slabs continue to lead all hard surfaces in November 2021, with $155.3 million in import values outpacing the same month in 2020. The 18 million ft² moving through U.S. ports of entry in November marks a year-to-year increase in volume of 24.5%. The Unexpected: Loads got lighter from Brazil. November 2021 granite shipments declined year-to-year by 14.4%, the Other Stone category (including quartzite) by 9.7%, and marble by 27.7%. The Strange: Although U.S. quartz-slab imports are growing, shipments from Malaysia and Vietnam dropped by 13.5% and 14.6%, respectively. November also marked the third straight month of decline for Malaysia, with shipments falling by a third since August. Next Month: December is the start of the Queasy Quarter for imports, with major holidays worldwide and an annual decline in surface demands. Don’t expect any major shifts until March. (Unless there’s a new supervariant, or stepped-up conflicts, or collapse of a major export-country’s economy, or ….)