U.S. Stone Imports 2004: Factor of Two

November 18, 2005

In 1996, the dimensional stone industry looked pretty good with more than $500 million in imports, but it might’ve been hard to get anyone to wager that, nine years later, that figure would double. Anything beyond that would be a sucker bet.

Well, hello sucker.

With imports of more than $2.3 billion last year, the U.S. staked its place among the top dimensional-stone consumers in the world. And, if anything, the demand for stone is growing faster every year in the 21st century.

The two-billion-dollar level also comes mainly from two stone varieties – granite and travertine – and two countries. While other sources provided plenty of fuel for growth in the past few years, the U.S. marketplace would look much different without Brazil or Turkey.

MOVING ON UP

Tracking stone imports into the United States remains one of the clearest indications of the industry’s health. Actual use statistics are extremely hard to come by, but the amount of foreign stone coming into the country – imports account for at least 80 percent of U.S. dimensional-stone consumption, according to a number of sources – offer a good way to track the trade’s direction.

The best source remains the data from the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC), which keeps tabs on U.S. Customs data in tonnage and the valuations used to assess tariffs.

In the past eight years, imports show that the U.S. stone industry is moving up. From $563 million in 1996, total dimensional-stone imports moved past the $1 billion mark in 1999, only to experience a slight reduction in the growth curve a few years later with the economic downturn after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. However, growth continued at a record pace, with 2003’s total reaching $1.82 billion. Last year, all dimensional stone imports climbed to $2.32 billion, marking a one-year 27.4-percent increase.

The mix of stone coming into the United States, tracked by value, also changed dramatically. In 1996, granite accounted for 29 percent, followed closely by marble at 23 percent and other calcareous stone – including limestone and alabaster – at 21 percent.
Last year, granite’s share in total import values came to 45 percent, with marble reduced to 15 percent and other calcareous to 10 percent. And travertine, which accounted for nine percent of dimensional-stone import values in 1996, posted a 15-percent share last year.

Throwing around grand totals sounds great, but big numbers are … big numbers. The reason for those dramatic increases – besides some mystical public awakening to the beauty of stone – is something far more-mundane: cost.

Let’s carve out one section of stone imports that’s representative of the market: cut/slab granite. In 1996, the average customs value per metric ton of the stone that’s graced millions of countertops came in at $767.77. Adjusting for a 14.15-percent inflation rate since then, that average ton would be valued at $876.41 in 2004 dollars.