Author: Vincent Honnold
International Trade Analyst

Change in 2015 from 2014:

  To view changing data, mouseover the graphic below.

• U.S. total exports: Decreased by $2.1 billion (5 percent) to $39.1 billion
• U.S. general imports: Increased by $0.2 billion (0.4 percent) to $42.3 billion

In 2015, U.S. general imports of forest products continued the steady growth experienced in recent years, albeit at a slower rate than in the previous four years. The continued expansion of the U.S. economy, in particular the housing sector, increased the import demand for many of the product groups included within the forest products sector. By contrast, U.S. total exports declined in 2015, in large part due to weaker construction activity in China and increased substitution of electronic documents for printed publications.

By virtue of geographic proximity and a large forest products industry, Canada has traditionally been the United States’ largest trading partner in forest products. In 2015, Canada accounted for 25 percent of the value of U.S. domestic exports of forest products and 43 percent of the value of U.S. general imports of these goods (table FP.1). China is the United States’ second-largest trading partner in forest products, accounting for 17 percent of U.S. domestic exports and 22 percent of U.S. general imports in 2015. Other major trading partners of the United States in forest products include Mexico, Brazil, the United Kingdom, and Japan.

Table FP.1: Forest products: U.S. exports and general imports, by selected trading partners, 2011–15

Source: Compiled from official statistics of the U.S. Department of Commerce for the 2011–15 period. These reflect all official revisions of previously published data up to June 2015 (accessed February 10, 2016).
Note: Import values are based on Customs value; export values are based on free along ship value, U.S. port of export. Calculations based on unrounded data. The trading partners shown are those with the largest total U.S. trade (U.S. general imports plus U.S. domestic exports) in these products in the current year. Re-exports (also called foreign exports) are further defined in the “Frequently Asked Questions” (FAQs).

U.S. Exports¹

The value of U.S. domestic exports of forest products declined by 5 percent between 2014 and 2015, from $39.5 billion to $37.5 billion. Much of this decline was accounted for by decreases in U.S. exports of printed matter, lumber, and logs and rough wood products (table FP.2). Digitalization is negatively affecting global demand for hard-copy newspapers, magazines, books, and other types of printed matter as consumers increasingly use personal computers and mobile devices to access and read text.² Most of the decline in U.S. exports of lumber and logs and rough wood products was accounted for by decreases in U.S. exports of these products to China. During 2015, the economic slowdown in China led to reduced activity in its construction sector, causing a decline in the demand and prices for U.S. exports of lumber and logs and rough wood products to this market.³

Table FP.2: Forest products: Leading changes in U.S. exports and imports, 2011–15

Source: Compiled from official statistics of the U.S. Department of Commerce for the 2011–15 period. These reflect all official revisions of previously published data up to June 2015 (accessed February 10, 2016).
Note: Import values are based on Customs value; export values are based on free along ship value, U.S. port of export. Calculations based on unrounded data.

U.S. Imports

U.S. general imports of forest products rose slightly between 2014 and 2015, from $42.1 billion to $42.3 billion. U.S. imports of wood veneer and wood panels accounted for much of this increase. Demand for these products was driven by increased activity in the residential construction market and the market for home repair and remodeling. In 2015, the United States continued its steady recovery from the housing collapse in 2008 and 2009, with new privately owned housing unit starts increasing by 11 percent over housing starts in 2014. Housing starts in 2015 were at their highest level since 2007.⁴

U.S. general imports of wood pulp and recovered (recycled) paper, one of the product groups included within the forest products sector, declined by 8.4 percent between 2014 and 2015, from $3.6 billion to $3.3 billion. Much of this decrease was accounted for by a decline in both the volume and the average unit value of chemical pulp, the intermediate product used in the production of paper. In 2015, U.S. production of paper fell 1 percent from the 2014 level as demand for printing and writing papers continued to be negatively affected by the increased use of the Internet and electronic devices.⁵ U.S. general imports of forest products from Canada declined by $880 million between 2014 and 2015, primarily because of decreases in the value of imports of lumber, wood pulp and recovered paper, newsprint, and printing and writing papers. U.S. general imports of forest products from China rose by $638 million between 2014 and 2015, primarily because of increases in the value of imports of miscellaneous articles of wood, paper boxes and bags, miscellaneous paper products, and printed matter