OR Christmas Trees Benefit From Import Tariffs, Suffer With Exports – KXL

Corbett, Ore. – Around five-million Oregon Christmas trees will be harvested this season, with shipments already en route to destinations across the globe. Oregon Christmas Tree Growers Association President Tom Norby says President Trump’s tariffs are both good and bad for business. “Certainly, the most positive thing about it is the importation of artificial Christmas trees, those now having a tariff associated with them.” Norby, who also owns Trout Creek Tree Farm in Corbett, says, “I am hearing that they’re quite a bit more expensive and they’re probably going to be a little bit [in] short supply.”

Around 84% of fake trees come from China and are subject to the import tax. “I personally wish the President would put a 200% tariff on artificial Christmas trees,” Norby tells KXL News.

But Norby says, reciprocal tariffs have had a cooling effect on international sales of our trees. “Oregon Christmas tree growers also export a lot of trees overseas. So this year, that was down quite a bit.” He adds, “There was a number of buyers from overseas that did not come to look at trees this year, and did not place orders this year because they were too expensive, even though the freight getting over to China, Taiwan and Singapore was a lot less than last year.”

Norby says around 90% of Oregon Christmas trees are sold domestically, though, where wholesale prices remain in line with last year, “Prices generally, at the wholesale level, are pretty stable. So hopefully that translates over to the retail level, and the retailers aren’t increasing the prices too much. Although, everything goes up.”