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This table presents the monetary values of U.S. exports and reexports of unmanufactured asbestos fibers and asbestos-based products, broken down by country or locality for the years 2022 and 2023. This data is significant for understanding international trade flows related to asbestos materials, which have important implications for industries such as construction, manufacturing, and health and safety regulation. Tracking these values helps monitor market demand, compliance with asbestos bans, and the economic impact of asbestos-related products, especially given the global shift away from asbestos use due to health concerns.
Analysis of the data reveals a slight increase in total exports from $12.4 million in 2022 to $12.7 million in 2023. Notably, manufactured asbestos-based products dominate the trade values, with unmanufactured fibers representing a very small fraction—$99,000 in 2022 dropping to $41,000 in 2023. Mexico stands out as the top destination, with exports rising sharply from $1.91 million to $3.5 million, indicating growing demand or reexports to this market. Other significant markets include El Salvador and Guatemala, which saw increases in manufactured product exports, with El Salvador rising from $1.22 million to $2.05 million and Guatemala slightly decreasing but remaining above $1 million. Several countries with asbestos bans, such as Canada and Chile, still show considerable import values, likely reflecting nonasbestos substitutes or reexports. Overall, the data highlights a stable but shifting landscape in asbestos-related trade, influenced by regulatory environments and market needs.
| TABLE 3 | ||||||||||||
| VALUE OF U.S. EXPORTS AND REEXPORTS OF UNMANUFACTURED ASBESTOS FIBERS AND ASBESTOS-BASED | ||||||||||||
| PRODUCTS, BY COUNTRY OR LOCALITY1, 2 | ||||||||||||
| (Thousand dollars) | ||||||||||||
| 2022 | 2023 | |||||||||||
| Unmanufactured | Manufactured | Unmanufactured | Manufactured | |||||||||
| Country or locality | fibers3 | products4 | Total | fibers3 | products4 | Total | ||||||
| Brazil | -- | 95 | 95 | -- | 13 | 13 | ||||||
| Canada5 | 20 | 460 | 480 | 20 | 535 | 555 | ||||||
| Cayman Islands | -- | 135 | 135 | -- | 24 | 24 | ||||||
| Chile5 | -- | 90 | 90 | -- | 254 | 254 | ||||||
| China | -- | 191 | 191 | -- | 76 | 76 | ||||||
| Colombia5 | -- | 46 | 46 | -- | 197 | 197 | ||||||
| Costa Rica | -- | 260 | 260 | -- | 353 | 353 | ||||||
| Curacao | 4 | -- | 4 | -- | -- | -- | ||||||
| Dominican Republic | -- | 436 | 436 | 5 | 87 | 92 | ||||||
| Ecuador | -- | -- | -- | -- | 153 | 153 | ||||||
| El Salvador | -- | 1220 | 1220 | -- | 2050 | 2050 | ||||||
| Germany5 | -- | 306 | 306 | -- | 132 | 132 | ||||||
| Guatemala | -- | 1440 | 1440 | 3 | 1190 | 1190 | ||||||
| Honduras5 | -- | 98 | 98 | -- | 45 | 45 | ||||||
| Hong Kong5 | -- | 118 | 118 | -- | 111 | 111 | ||||||
| Iceland5 | -- | -- | -- | -- | 99 | 99 | ||||||
| Italy5 | 9 | 9 | 17 | -- | 20 | 20 | ||||||
| Jamaica | -- | 57 | 57 | -- | 7 | 7 | ||||||
| Japan5 | 48 | 113 | 161 | -- | 117 | 117 | ||||||
| Jordan5 | -- | -- | -- | -- | 63 | 63 | ||||||
| Korea, Republic of5 | -- | 72 | 72 | 3 | 179 | 182 | ||||||
| Macau | -- | 63 | 63 | -- | 36 | 36 | ||||||
| Malaysia | -- | 7 | 7 | -- | 69 | 69 | ||||||
| Mexico | -- | 1910 | 1910 | -- | 3500 | 3500 | ||||||
| Nepal | -- | -- | -- | -- | 57 | 57 | ||||||
| New Zealand5 | -- | 223 | 223 | -- | -- | -- | ||||||
| Nigeria | -- | 257 | 257 | -- | 575 | 575 | ||||||
| Panama | -- | 202 | 202 | -- | 161 | 161 | ||||||
| Poland5 | -- | 38 | 38 | -- | 58 | 58 | ||||||
| Portugal5 | -- | 483 | 483 | -- | -- | -- | ||||||
| Saudi Arabia5 | -- | -- | -- | -- | 81 | 81 | ||||||
| Sint Maarten | -- | 87 | 87 | -- | 40 | 40 | ||||||
| Slovakia5 | -- | 659 | 659 | -- | -- | -- | ||||||
| Suriname | -- | -- | -- | 10 | 12 | 22 | ||||||
| Taiwan5 | -- | 1760 | 1760 | -- | 254 | 254 | ||||||
| United Kingdom5 | -- | 242 | 242 | -- | 358 | 358 | ||||||
| Uruguay5 | -- | 133 | 133 | -- | 8 | 8 | ||||||
| Venezuela | 18 | 669 | 688 | -- | 1130 | 1130 | ||||||
| Other5 | -- | r | 416 | r | 416 | r | -- | 594 | 594 | |||
| Total | 99 | 12300 | 12400 | 41 | 12600 | 12700 | ||||||
rRevised. -- Zero.
1Includes data available through March 18, 2024. Data are rounded to no more than three significant digits; may not add to totals shown.
2Free alongside ship value. Data are shown as reported by the U.S. Census Bureau without modification.
3Likely consists of materials misclassified as asbestos, reexports, and (or) waste products because asbestos has not been produced in the United States since 2002.
4Little to no manufacturing of asbestos products has taken place in the United States for many years. Reported exports may have been reexports and (or) exports of products that were similar to but did not contain asbestos.
5Data likely consist of predominantly nonasbestos products owing to asbestos bans in the indicated countries and (or) localities. Partial bans were in place in Colombia, Honduras, New Zealand, and Taiwan.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau.
Source: United States Geological Survey Mineral Resources Program
See also: Asbestos statistics | Mineral commodity prices