US toy import growth slips but could recover in coming years - Joseph Bonney, Senior Editor | Dec 03, 2014 3:07PM EST - JOC NEWS Containerized imports of toys through U.S. ports have slipped in recent months but are poised to recover as demographic trends return to more normal patterns following the Great Recession. Containerized U.S. imports of toys in the third quarter dipped 1.1 percent year-over-year ito 254,028 twenty-foot-equivalent units, following a 7.7 percent decline in the second quarter. Through September this year, toy import volume fell 4.5 percent, to 538,557 TEUs, according to PIERS, the data division of JOC Group Inc. JOC Economist Mario O. Moreno said toy import growth may resume as the number of children in the U.S. population rises after several years of stagnation in the aftermath of the Great Recession of 2008-2009. Government data show the number of children 11 years old or younger declined from 48.8 million in 2010 to 48.6 million in 2013. The 11-and-under population is projected at 49.4 million this year and is forecast to rise to 49.7 million in 2015. While TEU volume of toy imports has declined, the value of toy imports has increased. Ken Seiter, vice president of the Toy Importers Association, said this reflects increased sales of pricier toys and smaller items. China accounted for 85.2 percent of the value of toy imports during the first eight months of this year, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. Mexico was a distant second at 3.9 percent, up from 3.5 percent a year earlier. The next three in rank were Taiwan, Canada and Vietnam. Moreno said the 1.5 percent depreciation of the yuan against the dollar this year has helped Chinese manufacturers offset the impact of rising production costs He forecast that the value of toy imports will increase by 6.3 percent this year, to $3 billion, after three consecutive years of decline but that the value of toy imports still will be 5 percent below the 2010 peak. He forecast a 2.9 percent increase in 2015 but said ocean shipments could be affected by continuing port congestion at Los Angeles-Long Beach.
Posted on: Thu, 04 Dec 2014 06:10:59 +0000
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