The U.S. Department of Commerce has issued a preliminary affirmative determination in its antidumping duty investigation of hardwood and decorative plywood from China, finding that Chinese products were sold in the U.S. market at less than fair value during the period of October 1, 2024, through March 31, 2025. Effective March 2, 2026, U.S. Customs and Border Protection will begin suspending liquidation of subject imports and collecting cash deposits at applicable rates.
Tariff Rates and Retroactive Application
The determination establishes an estimated weighted-average dumping margin of 187.27% for the China-wide entity. An adjusted cash deposit rate of 185.96% has been set for both listed producer-exporter combinations and the China-wide entity, reflecting offsets for export subsidies identified in the parallel countervailing duty investigation.
Commerce also made a preliminary finding of "critical circumstances" with respect to Chinese exporters, allowing for retroactive application of duties. Consequently, suspension of liquidation applies to subject merchandise entered on or after December 2, 2025-90 days prior to the notice's publication.
The China-wide entity includes numerous non-responding producers and exporters, including Linyi Evergreen Wood Co., Ltd., Xuzhou Shelter Import and Export Co., Ltd., and various other companies that did not participate in the investigation. After selected mandatory respondents failed to respond to the antidumping questionnaire, Commerce based its determinations on facts otherwise available, drawing adverse inferences where warranted.
Parallel Investigations and Final Determination Timeline
The antidumping investigation runs parallel to countervailing duty investigations covering the same products from China, Indonesia, and Vietnam. If provisional measures in the countervailing duty case expire before those in the antidumping proceeding, cash deposit rates may revert to unadjusted dumping margins.
Commerce is scheduled to issue its final determination by May 10, 2026-75 days after the February 24 signing of the preliminary decision. Subsequently, the U.S. International Trade Commission will make a final injury determination, assessing whether the U.S. industry has suffered material injury from these imports.
China's Declining Presence in U.S. Plywood Market
The preliminary duties mark another chapter in the protracted trade tensions affecting Chinese plywood exports to the United States. Chinese hardwood plywood shipments to the U.S. have declined for nine consecutive years, plummeting from approximately 2 million cubic meters in 2016 to just 52,800 cubic meters in 2025-a reduction of roughly 38-fold.
In 2025, the United States imported a total of 3.23 million cubic meters of hardwood plywood, representing 20% year-on-year growth. Import value rose 22% to $2.402 billion, while average import prices increased 2% to $743 per cubic meter.
Supply Chain Shifts: Vietnam and Indonesia Gain Ground
As Chinese volumes have contracted, other Asian suppliers have rapidly expanded their presence in the U.S. market:
- Vietnam: Supplied 980,000 cubic meters, a 33% increase, capturing 30% of total U.S. import volume
- Indonesia: Shipped 891,000 cubic meters, surging 40% and claiming 28% market share
- Canada: Supplied 183,000 cubic meters, declining 17%
- Russia: Provided 178,000 cubic meters, growing 3%
Additional suppliers showing notable growth included Malaysia (65% increase to 133,000 cubic meters), Thailand (70% increase to 108,000 cubic meters), Finland (186% increase to 84,000 cubic meters), and Italy (112% increase to 66,000 cubic meters).
Product Category Breakdown
By wood species, birch plywood dominated U.S. imports in 2025 at 1.71 million cubic meters, followed by non-tropical hardwood plywood at 1.17 million cubic meters and tropical plywood at 332,000 cubic meters. Smaller volumes included walnut (13,000 cubic meters), bamboo plywood (12,000 cubic meters), mahogany (916 cubic meters), and agathis/kauri (505 cubic meters).
Between 2019 and 2025, annual U.S. hardwood plywood import volumes ranged from 2.71 million cubic meters in 2024 to a pandemic-era peak of 5.30 million cubic meters in 2021. Average import prices rose from $439 per cubic meter in 2020 to $737 per cubic meter in 2025.
Industry Context and Broader Trade Actions
The investigation originated from a petition filed in May 2025 by the Coalition for Fair Trade in Hardwood Plywood, representing major U.S. producers including Columbia Forest Products, Commonwealth Plywood, and Timber Products. The coalition alleged that producers in China, Vietnam, and Indonesia benefited from dozens of government subsidy programs-including grants, tax breaks, and preferential loans-enabling below-market pricing that has materially injured the domestic industry by reducing production, shipments, and employment.
The U.S. Department of Commerce is conducting parallel antidumping and countervailing duty investigations covering China, Indonesia, and Vietnam. Final determinations for Indonesia and Vietnam are currently scheduled for mid-July 2026.
Footnote (Data Sources)
The information presented in this report is derived from official announcements by the U.S. Department of Commerce, as published in the Federal Register and reported by industry trade media including International Trade Today, Lesprom Analytics, Woodworking Network, and Panels & Furniture Asia. Import statistics are based on analysis by Lesprom Analytics and data from China's General Administration of Customs. Supplementary market context is drawn from reports by the Coalition for Fair Trade in Hardwood Plywood and Wiley Rein's International Trade Practice, legal counsel to the Coalition. All dates and duty rates reflect determinations as of March 2026.
