CLEVELAND, OH — Sales of decorative laminates in the United States are forecast to reverse their downward trend and increase 2.1% per year to more than 12 billion square feet in 2013, valued at $7.4 billion, according to Decorative Laminates, a new study from The Freedonia Group Inc., an industry research firm. Gains will be sparked by increased demand from the flooring industry, where shipments of laminate flooring are projected to advance over 11% per year to 750 million square feet in 2013.

The study also says that cabinets are expected to remain the leading market for decorative laminates in 2013, with demand for laminates reaching about three billion square feet. Advances will be derived from the rebounding housing market, as increasing housing completions will spur demand for cabinets in new housing. However, gains will be restrained by increasing competition from cabinets made from other materials, especially solid wood.

Laminates made from low-pressure overlays, including low-basis weight papers, saturated papers, decorative foils and vinyl films, are forecast to account for nearly 80% of decorative laminate sales volume in 2013. Demand will be driven by increased use of saturated papers in the high-growth flooring market and continued adoption of low-pressure laminates as low-cost decorative surfacing products for furniture, cabinets and store fixtures. High-pressure laminates are expected to post more rapid gains than low-pressure laminates through 2013.

The 286-page Decorative Laminates is available for $4,700 from The Freedonia Group. For further details, contact Corinne Gangloff by phone at (440) 684-9600 or e-mail [email protected].