Brian Carson, president of the North American flooring segment of Mohawk Industries, spoke strongly in favor of a new round of proposed tariffs on Chinese flooring products during recent public hearings, testifying that the duties would support U.S. flooring manufacturers.
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Brian Carson, president of the North American flooring segment of Mohawk Industries, spoke strongly in favor of a new round of proposed tariffs on Chinese flooring products during recent public hearings, testifying that the duties would support U.S. flooring manufacturers.
“I can state unequivocally that U.S. manufacturing capacity and jobs would increase if Chinese imports stopped flooding the market,” Carson said, according to transcripts of the hearing.
He went on to state that U.S. manufacturers are capable of fulfilling consumer demand for flooring products.
“And in the limited instances where capacity is insufficient to meet the demand, alternative third-country sources are available,” Carson added.
Other wood flooring manufacturers and distributors testified against the Trump administration's proposed tariffs during the public hearings, which were held Aug. 20–24 and Aug. 27 at the U.S. International Trade Commission in Washington D.C.
Sam Cobb, CEO and managing partner of West Plains, Mo.-based Real Wood Floors, testified on the first day of the hearings and stated that an additional 25 percent tariff on Chinese wood flooring would have a devastating effect on his company, which he said is responsible for approximately 12 percent of all the hickory lumber exported to China last year.
“We just cannot be burdened with an additional 25 percent duty under Section 301 and survive,” Cobb said, according to transcripts of the hearing. “It seems to me, if this Committee’s concern is the growth of U.S. manufacturing, then you must understand these import tariffs will cripple the domestic U.S. hardwood lumber industry,” he continued, noting that while the U.S. is the world’s largest exporter of hardwood lumber, China is its largest importer.
Derrick Shaoulpour, the executive vice president of HF Design, a flooring manufacturer in Hicksville, N.Y., echoed Cobb’s concerns, and asked that engineered hardwood, laminate and vinyl be taken off the list of proposed duties, arguing that there are few domestic resources where his company can purchase the same products currently supplied by its partner factories in China.
“The floorings that we sell are purchased many months in advance, as developers and contractors have a fixed cost structure,” Shaoulpour said. “Any significant increases such as the ones proposed will halt these projects and eventually lead to immediate default in construction loans as well as company bankruptcies.”
Shaw Industries Executive Vice President Tim Baucom also testified during the hearings and requested that vinyl flooring tiles be removed from the list of items proposed for 25 percent tariffs.
If approved, the proposed tariffs would impact $200 billion worth of Chinese products.
Related:
Trade War Escalates: China Threatens 25 Percent Tariffs on U.S. Hardwood
Trump Administration Proposes 10 Percent Tariffs on Chinese Wood Flooring
