Articles

The State of the Nation’s Housing Wednesday, August 22, 2018 by Floor Covering Weekly By Kermit Baker The Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University… Read More

Q&A: MSI’s Rup Shah Offers Perspective on Proposed Tariffs MSI Co-President Rupesh Shah (right) with Co-President Rajesh Shah (left) and Founder/CEO Manu Shah (center). (Photo… Read More

Rising home prices and interest rates pushed housing affordability to a 10 year low in the second quarter of 2018, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index (HOI) released today.  Read More

It has been a long time since the floor covering industry was driving with all cylinders working great. 2006 was the last year commercial contract, residential replacement and builder business were all doing great. This year, residential replacement slowed the industry down mainly due to flat existing home sales. While new home sales were up 8.3 percent (+45,000 additional new homes over last year) existing home sales were up a paltry 1.1 percent. Read More

U.S. floor coverings sales strengthened in 2017 due to rising consumer confidence and sharper increases in single-family home construction. According to Catalina Research, U.S. floor coverings dollar sales are estimated to have increased by 4.8 percent in 2017 to $25.5 billion. Read More

The tile sector has been on an upward trajectory since 2012, and while the increase in 2016 sales is not as sharp as previous years, porcelain and ceramic tile — as well as stone — continue to see steady growth. U.S. ceramic (manufacturer) dollar sales increased by 6.3 percent in 2016, according to Catalina Research. Stone sales increased by 6.7 percent. Read More

Outside of its inherit beauty, natural stone also sets itself apart from other categories with its individuality. "No two pieces of natural stone are identical," said Barbara Haaksma, vice president of marketing for Emser Tile. "Texture variations, fissure lines and rich tones combine to tell a story of their own for innate one-of-a-kind designs. Over time, natural stone develops a unique patina and becomes a product of its environment."  Read More

Coming into 2018, many tile suppliers cited countertops as a key opportunity for the year ahead. According to Glenn Harry, general manager, stone and sales operation for Mohawk’s Dal-Tile Corporation, the U.S. countertop industry is estimated to be about $5 billion in sales annually, with roughly half coming from stone, quartz and a newer product known as gauged porcelain. Read More

Overall in 2017, ceramic tile sales are estimated to have increased by 6.8 percent in dollars and 5.4 percent in square feet, according to Catalina Research. Read More

Construction is one of the few industries in our economy that has been sheltered from globalism. Often it isn’t feasible to export or import construction jobs, while construction materials — steel, lumber, concrete, gypsum — are typically expensive to transport relative to their cost. On the positive side, this makes it challenging for foreign competitors to break into the U.S. market. However, it also makes it difficult for U.S. companies to do business abroad. Read More