As we approach the holiday shopping season (I’ve seen Christmas trees in stores already), the Journal of Commerce reports that U.S. toy imports were down 9 percent in August and September compared to last year. For 2011 through September, the total was 7.6 percent less than 2010. According to the article, this drop is the result of reduced demand and cautious retailers, as well as increased costs from the main source of toy imports, China.

The Journal of Commerce explains that 89 percent of containerized toy imports this year have come from China. Toy imports peak in October. In September, toys were the second largest containerized import commodity.