Tariffs close down Timberlakes in Mt. Vernon

By: 
Steve Chapman

Timberlakes Products, which manufactures firepits and wood pellets, has indefinitely closed down its manufacturing facility in the western Mt. Vernon industrial park. The $12 million facility was built and opened in 2017.
Dr. Phillip Yang, of Timberlakes, blamed the closure on tariffs which have been imposed on steel between the United States and China. He said the facility would be reopened when circumstances were more favorable. He declined to elaborate further, citing a need to speak with his board of directors.
President Donald Trump imposed tariffs on $50 billion in Chinese goods last year, citing theft of United States intellectual property by China. He also said the tariffs would make the United States “a much stronger, a much richer nation.” China retaliated by imposing a 15-percent tariff on 120 products it imports from the United States, and a 25-percent tariff on eight other products.
The facility employed fewer than a dozen workers.

Category:

Lawrence County Record

312 S. Hickory St.
Mt. Vernon, MO, 65712
www.lawrencecountyrecord.com

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