The Decorative Hardwoods Association (DHA) is calling on the U.S. government to strengthen tariffs on Russian wood products and to prevent circumvention through third countries. In a letter to the Commerce Department and the Office of the US Trade Representative dated January 29, 2025, DHA highlighted that the U.S. imported $62 million of birch plywood directly from Russia in 2024, while Vietnam and Indonesia supplied an additional $200 million and $160 million, respectively, of plywood made with Russian-origin birch. The association warned that these imports help finance Russia’s war effort and urged the administration to either ban or impose higher tariffs on all wood products containing Russian-origin materials.
At the same time, DHA is urging the US to exempt Canadian imports from any new tariffs, arguing that hardwood plywood, veneer, and engineered wood flooring manufacturing in North America is highly integrated. The letter emphasized that many U.S. manufacturers rely on Canadian partners for key processing steps, such as veneer splicing, before reimporting the materials for final production. DHA warned that tariffs on Canadian wood products would harm US manufacturers while benefiting competitors in Vietnam, Indonesia, and other Asian countries. The association also called on the U.S. government to monitor potential circumvention of trade laws through Canada and to encourage Canada to strengthen its own trade enforcement against Chinese wood imports.
