Memphis, TN, August 18--Hardwood flooring shipments for July 2005 were 42,903,000 square feet, a decline (4.8%) from the previous month’s shipments, but a significant increase (5.5%) compared to the same month of 2004.
The report on monthly shipments of hardwood flooring products for the month of July 2005 was released today by NOFMA: The Wood Flooring Manufacturers Association. The information represents data from hardwood flooring manufacturers in the U.S.
Overall 2004 shipments set a 40-year high for the industry. July’s gain compared to July of 2004 brought year-to-date shipments to within a percentage point of the 2004 pace. July 2004 shipments were reported at 40,675,000 square feet.
Year-to-date shipments for the first seven months of 2005 are 297,339,000 square feet, nearly identical to the same period in 2004 when shipments through the first six months were 299,960,000 square feet. Hardwood flooring shipments for the past 12 months have totaled 515,428,000 square feet, or about a million feet higher than the same 12-month period one year ago.
NOFMA believes the continued healthy pace of shipments reflect both consumer preference for wood flooring products and particularly strong new home construction and repair and remodel numbers.
NOTE: In June 2005, NOFMA began reporting figures in square feet. For comparison purposes, a factor of .77 has been applied to convert previous months’ board footage figures to square feet.
