Mineral Commodity Summaries 2011 - Environmental and Energy ...

STONE (DIMENSION)155Events, Trends, and Issues: The United States is the world’s largest market for dimension stone. Imports ofdimension stone increased in value to about $1.8 billion compared with $1.4 billion in 2009. Dimension stone exportsincreased to about $130 million. Apparent consumption, by value, was $1.96 billion in 2010—a $330 million, or 20%,increase from that of 2009. Dimension stone for construction and refurbishment was used in both commercial andresidential markets, with 2010 activity improving compared with that of 2009. The weakening of the U.S. dollar hasaided the U.S. export market for dimension stone. Additionally, the sluggish U.S. economy tended to decreasedemand for and imports of dimension stone in the near term.World Mine Production and Reserves:Mine production Reserves 52009 2010 eUnited States 1,620 1,450 Adequate except for certainOther countries NA NA special types and localWorld total NA NA shortages.World Resources: Dimension stone resources of the world are sufficient. Resources can be limited on a local levelor occasionally on a regional level by the lack of a particular kind of stone that is suitable for dimension purposes.Substitutes: Substitutes for dimension stone include aluminum, brick, ceramic tile, concrete, glass, plastics, resinagglomeratedstone, and steel.e Estimated. NA Not available.1 See also Stone (Crushed).2 Includes Puerto Rico.3 Excluding office staff.4 Defined as imports – exports.5 See Appendix C for resource/reserve definitions and information concerning data sources.U.S. Geological Survey, Mineral Commodity Summaries, January 2011