The highly promotional apparel market sharply cut imports by 49.6% in the first quarter of 2017, a major reason why overall imports fell to $4,038.1 million this year compared to $4,615.1 million. While sneaker imports inched up 0.3% to $1,537.6 million this year against $1,533.4 million in 2015, apparel imports were just $473.6 million this year against $940.0 million last year. Exercise equipment imports were up, but all other equipment categories fell as overall equipment imports were down 5.4% to $2,026.9 million from $2,141.7 million.

Our quarterly study of U.S. imports is drawn from the International Trade Commission’s database on imports ... Log in to view full article.