National Hardwood Magazine - April 2017

TRADE TALK Continued

TRADE TALK Continued Lumber For A Lifetime. Phone: 319-986-5524 Toll Free: 877-SAWLOGS Fax: 319-986-5710 Email: sally@bateyltd.com Sales: Sally Johnson Specializing in Walnut, Soft Maple, White Oak and Red Oak “THE BEST RULE IS THE GOLDEN RULE” MAKE IT A RULE TO CALL! THE HOUSE OF RULES over 130 employees participate in management and production standards, helping to assure value and quality service can be passed on to customers, according to a company spokesman. HMI Hardwoods is a sawmill and kiln-drying operation, with monthly production volumes of 1.8 million board feet of domestic Hardwood species. Learn more at www.hmilumber.com. ONTARIO Continued from page 7 In overall economic news, the Conference Board of Canada said consumer spending growth helped bolster Canada’s economy in 2016, despite sluggish job growth and wage gains – but swelling household debt will limit that spending growth. In its annual provincial outlook report, the Conference Board expects 2017 real GDP growth of 1.9 percent, with federal stimulus accounting for 0.3 percentage points of the increase – but low business investment and slow labor force growth means “we are unlikely to see any acceleration in real GDP growth in 2018,” stated a Board spokesman. The Conference Board estimated that Canada’s economy grew only 1.3 percent in 2016, held back by weak business with a lower loonie the past two years. British Columbia, which had Canada’s fastest economic growth the past two years, is forecast to slow to 1.9 percent. Ontario, too, will slow to 2 percent growth in 2017, from 2.7 percent last year. The Conference Board suggests that tightened mortgage rules will slow Canada’s housing market, particularly in those two provinces. QUEBEC Continued from page 7 acknowledged that the Trump-related economic uncertainty had yet to dissipate. A joint statement released after the meeting declared the governments would “encourage opportunities for companies in both countries” to create jobs through infrastructure investments, but it did not offer explicit comfort that Canada would be exempt from any Buy America provisions. Furthermore, the statement noted that both sides will work together on labor mobility in various economic sectors. However, it didn’t say how it would make that happen or whether it would come through the upcoming renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement. On trade, business leaders contacted said they felt some relief after Trump told reporters that NAFTA would only be tweaked, or renegotiated, rather than dismantled. So those in the forestry sector who were polled, as well as other business sectors, are awaiting the outcome of Trump’s new measures and where that leaves Canadian businesses. 86 APRIL 2017 NATIONAL HARDWOOD MAGAZINE

NEWS DEVELOPMENTS Continued from page 9 Jatoba and Tigerwood. PG Hardwood Flooring, headquartered in Quebec, varnish, either at the factory or on site, once installed. PG offers a range of more than 5,000 distinct products. For more information, visit www.pgmodel.com. SCMA UPDATE Continued from page 10 Also, renowned TV personality and home designer Vicki Payne will be spotlighting Cypress in the new season of her syndicated home-improvement show, “For Your Home.” The plan is for Cypress to be used in a variety of applications more! The episodes will appear on PBS stations across the country and on demand at www.ForYourHome.com. Be sure to tune in. THE VOICE OF THE CYPRESS INDUSTRY Cypress is a versatile wood that can be used in myriad urally. With so many options, come even more questions. And design professionals - along with consumers at all levels - continually turn to the SCMA for answers. To address this need for additional information, in 2017 SCMA will be developing a series of short videos designed to provide an overview of Cypress, discuss its different uses, and offer tips LEARN MORE The Southern Cypress Manufacturers Association motion of Cypress building products to design professionals and consumers. For more information about our work, or to www.CypressInfo.org. WHO'S WHO Continued from page 78 AJ’s Furniture LLC, located in Topeka, IN. AJ’s Furniture is a manufacturer of living room furniture, including rockers, occasional tables, gliders, Morris chairs and recliners. The company purchases over 100,000 board feet annually of Select and Better, kiln-dried Hardwoods, including quartersawn White Oak, plainsawn Red Oak, Cherry and Brown Maple. AJ’s Furniture was founded in 2000 by Beechy and his wife, Inez. He used his previous experience as a kitchen chair craftsman and his mother-in-law’s experience with upholstered seating to begin crafting mission style furniture pieces. All products are manufactured in the U.S. from the highest quality Hardwoods available and the company uses Please turn the page APRIL 2017 NATIONAL HARDWOOD MAGAZINE 87