Port-of-Entry

The General View: U.S. hard-surface imports finally crossed over the “400” bar in May, with the $425.2 million in customs value showing a 16.2% increase from April. However, the total is still more than 13% behind the $490.8 million of May 2022.

The Expected: Quartz surfaces continued the disturbing trend of underperforming inflation rates; the $120.3 million in imports during May represented only a 3% increase from April. Quartz-surfaces volume only moved up 3.9% month-over-month. It’s still a calamity zone in comparison to May 2022 shipments, with significant deficits in value (-22%) and volume (-23.6%).

The Unexpected: Granite showed signs of a revival in May. The 3% increase in year-over-year shipment value didn’t match the U.S. inflation rate, but it’s the only sector to top May 2022 numbers. It also shows granite exporters to the United States making more with less product; shipments in the same period declined by 25.6%.

The Strange: Other Stone (the sector that includes, among other things, quartzite) looked like a shock-therapy patient, with a sudden rise in value in May ($47 million) to almost reach last year’s record levels. Year-over-year volume still lags by 16%, but Brazil is ahead of May 2022 by 5.1%.

Next Month: The first five months of 2023 indicate that hard-surface imports won’t reach 2022 levels. However, the real demand for the prime summer months of the U.S. building season will finally emerge with July and August shipments, as stateside inventories are (or aren’t) restocked.