The U.S. imported 4.7 million bikes in the first quarter this year; in dollar value, that’s an increase of 52% over the first quarter last year and 143% over the same quarter in 2020, which is when the supply chain first slowed due to Covid 19.
The first quarter this year followed huge import volumes in the second half of 2021. The third quarter last year was the largest, valued at $571 million.
The country of origin of bike imports has changed significantly in the last four years. Four years ago the Trump administration’s tariffs on Chinese imports had not yet taken effect. Since then, the U.S. has imported an increased number of bikes from Vietnam and Cambodia to escape those tariffs. However, Vietnam exports declined steeply in the second half of 2021 because of COVID-19 shut downs there.