Which Country Is No.1 In Importing Tile?

Who Is the Biggest Importer of Ceramic Tiles in the World?

The United States is the world’s biggest importer of ceramic tiles. there! Straight to the point!

For years now, ceramic tiles imports have been registering a consistent growth. 2021 proved to be yet another strong year of strong performance in the U.S and That’s largely thanks to an increase in the housing and construction markets.

Despite this figure, the US is not the world’s largest consumer of ceramics, with countries such as China, Brazil, India, and Vietnam surpassing it. However, a massive 69% of the United States’ ceramic tiles consumption comes from imports, making it the most active market for ceramic exports.

U.S Ceramic Tile Imports and Consumption See Strong Growth in 2021

2021 was a year of robust growth for both the U.S. economy and ceramic tile market. Supported by gains in the construction and housing markets, U.S. ceramic tile consumption increased for the first time since 2018.

U.S. ceramic tile consumption grew by 9.9% to 289 million sq.m. Imports reached their highest level in fifteen years: 207 million sq.m with a total value of US$ 2.5 billion, up 13.6% and 25% respectively on 2020.

Big Tile Exporters to the United States

Spain, which in 2020 supplanted China as the largest exporter of ceramic tile to the U.S. by volume, maintained this position. Spanish sales (46 million sq.m; +21.7% on 2020) held a 22.2% share of total U.S. imports by volume in 2021, up from 20.7% the previous year.

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On this subject, also read Are Spanish tiles good quality? and Buying Spanish Ceramic Tile

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• Italy

Italy was the second largest exporter to the U.S. by volume – its highest position since 2008 – with 36 million sq.m. of tiles sold in the US (+19.1%). Italian-produced tiles made up 17.4% of the U.S. import market last year, up from 16.6% the previous year.

• Mexico

Mexico, which was the third largest exporter to the U.S. with 33.4 million sq.m (+7.3% on 2020), has seen its share of total imports fall steadily over the last decade from an all-time high of 31.5% in 2012 to 16.1% last year.

• Turkey

Rounding out the top five were Turkey (13.5% share; 27.9 million sq.m, +20.9%) and Brazil (22.2 million sq.m, +1.6%) with a 10.7% share of U.S. imports by volume.

The Biggest Tile Exporter to the U.S on a Dollar Basis

In 2021, the total value of ceramic tile imports increased by 25% to US$ 2.5 billion. On a dollar basis (CIF + duty) Italy remained the largest exporter to the U.S. (US$ 790.7 million, +25.4%%), making up 31.6% of 2021 U.S. imports. Once again, Italian tiles confirm the highest average price of $21.92/sq.m, up 5.6% from $20.76/sq.m, in 2020.

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Read the article “which countries make the best porcelain tile“, for more information

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Other ceramic tile importing countries

Choosing the right country to market your ceramic products is crucial in the time of exporting. It’s good to know who the biggest and most trusted countries are for you. Turkey, Russia, Qatar and Iraq are among the importing countries who import ceramic tiles in big quantities.

Iran, on the other hand is among the world’s top 10 producers and exporters of ceramic tiles. A large amount of exported tiles to different parts of the world, specially the mentioned countries, is provided by Iran _ specifically by CP.
We at CP will help you to meet your goals, from manufacturing to finding right ceramic dealers, from producing tiles to purchasing the best countries to showcase your products. Contact us today.