NEWS

The European Commissioner for Environment notified the European Parliament of her intention to delay implementation of the EU Deforestation Regulation by one more year, citing concerns about the IT platform that will manage compliance data.

Read More: EU Set to Propose New Delay to Anti-Deforestation Rules → 

The new Section 232 tariffs affect imports of wood-based upholstered chairs, cabinets, and vanities. Industry executives are reacting and adapting to the change. Demand for locally made furniture is strong enough that the Vaughan-Bassett Furniture plant in Virginia has added hours and overtime to keep up. The company president confirmed that demand has risen as tariffs made imports less attractive, creating support for American-made goods.

On October 2, Treasury Secretary Bessent stated that the White House will announce a bailout for farmers negatively impacted by retaliatory tariffs as soon as this week. The Hardwood Federation is pushing for hardwoods to be included in any aid package.

PHOTO © Garrett English

On October 3, DHA published a widely distributed press release highlighting the request by nine industry leaders for Section 232 tariffs to be applied to decorative hardwoods.

On September 30, DHA and several member CEOs sent a letter to President Trump asking him to include hardwood plywood, hardwood veneer, and engineered wood flooring imports in Section 232 tariffs. We emphasized that Roseburg Forest Products just made the difficult decision to close their last remaining hardwood plywood plant in the U.S. and that 80% of the U.S. market is now controlled by dumped and subsidized imports from Asia.