FIREWORKS

FIREWORKS

Rising costs, less product

William Weimer, vice president of B.J. Alan Co. in Youngstown, says slowed shipping of fireworks from China is only one factor that has affected the availability and price of consumer fireworks in the U.S. Other factors:

The rate of inflation in China is rising more rapidly than in the U.S.

The Chinese government pays its exporters a rebate to offset their costs. At the beginning of this year, it was cut from 13 percent to 5 percent. The exporters looked to the wholesalers to make up some of the costs.

The Chinese yuan is weakening next to the U.S. dollar. Currently, 1 dollar gets 7 yuan, but by the end of the year, it is expected that 1 dollar will get 6.5 yuan.

The shipping costs for U.S. companies have doubled over the last two years. Weimer said B.J. Alan Co. pays an estimated $8,000 to ship one container from China. The company ships about 1,000 containers per year.

Until last year, the Chinese were not permitted to buy fireworks in large cities. Now there is a full-scale domestic market for fireworks in these cities, and it is more profitable for Chinese fireworks manufactures to sell their products in China vs. selling them wholesale to the U.S.

Wholesale Fireworks Corp. of Hubbard has noticed an increase in the cost of all consumer fireworks, but says some handmade products are more expensive than others.

Snappers are selling for 55 cents a box this year. Over the last couple years, Wholesale Fireworks sold them three for $1. The wholesale price for a case of snappers jumped nearly 30 percent this year from last.

Bottle rockets are priced at two gross — one gross contains 144 bottle rockets — for $7.50.Wholesale Fireworks has paid $50 for one case of bottle rockets this year.

Source: Weimer and Wholesale Fireworks