Import Trends 2008

GRANITE
Worked granite received a closer look earlier because it’s the largest segment of the U.S. imported-stone market. It also proved to be one of the most-volatile last year – as seen by the big fourth-quarter volume and value swings – and one in need of a steady performer to bring some stability to the sector.

Data from 2008 and the beginning of this year is showing one exporting country stepping up to fill the bill. And, it’s China.

Historically, granite’s Big Four – Brazil, China, India and Italy – account for 90 percent of granite imports to the U.S., and 2008 again fell into line. The quartet accounted for 92 percent of the $1.21 billion in value and 93.2 percent of the 1.71 million metric tons of worked granite shipped here last year.

Brazil topped all countries in exports – in dollars and tons – in 2008, but the country fell from previous heights. The $426.5 million in worked granite value last year from Brazil marked a decline of 23.7 percent from 2007, while the 496,041 in metric tons represented a nearly 41-percent tumble from the previous year.

China, meanwhile, came extremely close to Brazil in matching its worked-granite imports in 2008 with 495,006 metric tons, which came within 1,000 metric tons of matching its 2007 U.S. imports. China also held fast on 2008 worked-granite value; its $299.7 million only represented a 7.1-percent decline from 2007.

India, meanwhile, posted $181.2 million in 2008 worked-granite imports (down 15.4 percent from 2007), although its 421,657 in imported metric tons marked only a 1.7-percent dip from the previous year. Italy, meanwhile, saw a major 42.3-percent decline in volume with its 186,551 metric tons; the $208.5 million assigned in value showed a 23.8-percent drop from 2007.

Italy’s steep decline in the worked-granite imports offered one small consolation: the lead in per-unit value. The big drop-off in volume provided the major reason for its high per-metric ton average for U.S. worked-granite imports at $1,117, easily besting 2007’s average of $846.55.

High value-to-volume ratios and a weaker U.S. dollar early in 2008 provided Brazil with an average per-metric-ton value of $859.84 (and, yes, that includes the dramatically lower fourth-quarter levels cited earlier), up from $665.51 in 2007. India’s 2008 average of $429.79 per metric ton dropped from the previous year’s $499.74.

And China? Yes, its per-metric-ton average dropped from 2007’s $650.91 to $606.52. However, a difference of less than 10 percent in a bad economic year, and with a currency (the yuan) tightly pegged to the U.S. dollar, offered a remarkably stable performance.

First quarter 2009 U.S. imports of worked granite from the major exporting countries showed declines of at least 50 percent from the first three months of 2008. China held the lead in volume, with value consistent with 2008 averages.