PRESIDENT’S LETTER Chris Walker As of this writing, it appears that in addition to tariffs already imposed on ceramic tile from China, an action filed with the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) alleging dumping and unfair trade practices is moving forward as well. The preliminary findings, scheduled to be available July 8th have been delayed with a final determination to come per- haps early next year. The anti-dumping/anti-subsidy investigation could have a much more significant price impact on Chinese tile than tariffs already in place. The anti-dumping action against quartz slab products brought increases as high as 280%+. If ceramic tile products follow that course, there significant realign- ment within the manufacturing, dis- tributing and installation commu- nity regarding Chinese tile products is likely. There will no doubt be price adjustments in the market. Some will feel as though they are suddenly unre- strained to impose unsup- ported price increases not related to materials cost or the costs of doing busi- ness, but instead to a pre- sumed realignment of the political landscape. The president of one of the biggest tile manufac- turers in the U.S. once said, “The cost of installa- tion labor is too high.” It makes me wonder, if the cost of labor is too high, is the cost of tile too high? If the subsidized tile coming from China kept tile prices low, did that unfairly set Tariffs help who? Milton Client Support Graphic Designer Greg Corain Web Development Team Corain Bryan Sales Team Manager Audio Team Anthony Marketing Team Mike J. Jenn Web Development Team Established 1990 Web Development • Corporate Video Production Telephone On-Hold Messages • Printed Promotional Gear Review Management • Search Optimization Paid Search Management CALL US TODAY! 22 TileLetter | July 2019