US hardwood plywood producers have initiated the first anti-dumping trade dispute against China since Donald Trump’s victory and are asking the government to impose punitive tariffs on imports they claim are threatening thousands of American jobs.
The Coalition for Fair Trade of Hardwood Plywood has filed a petition with the US Department of Commerce and the US International Trade Commission asking the government “to stand with American workers and confront China’s unfair trade practices,” the group said in a statement on Friday. The group alleges Chinese producers of hardwood plywood receive illegal government subsidies such as tax breaks and discounted materials which have enabled them to capture a growing share of the US market, according to the statement.
The petition is the first anti-dumping action launched with the US International Trade Commission since Donald Trump was elected president on November 8, according to data from the agency’s website. During the presidential campaign, Trump pledged to bring cases against China for “unfair subsidy behaviour” and use “every lawful presidential power to remedy trade disputes,” including tariffs. 
While the timing of the filing had “nothing to do with the” election, “Chinese unfair trade was a big campaign issue, so I think it’s more top of mind to Americans,” Kip Howlett, president of the Reston, Virginia-based Hardwood Plywood & Veneer Association, said in a telephone interview before the petition was filed. “America right now is hurting, and that’s in rural America.” 
Chinese hardwood plywood imports have increased significantly from 2013 to 2015 and now account for more than 55% of the US market, Howlett said. Six US mills have already shuttered production, while the remaining businesses are “limping” as American companies continue to lose market share, he said. The petition represents six producers, including Columbia Forest Products, Commonwealth Plywood and Murphy Plywood. Thousands of jobs have been lost, particularly in rural parts of Oregon, Washington, Michigan, Wisconsin and Vermont, Howlett said. Hardwood plywood is a $3bn industry in the US and the materials are used in everything from flooring to kitchen cabinets.
“It’s pretty clear to us that we’re kind of in a death spiral right now,” Howlett said.