News in end use

The National Federation of Independent Business reported its Small Business Optimism Index (SBOI) declined by 1.1 points to a reading of 89.0 in April. This marks the sixteenth consecutive month below the survey’s 49-year average of 98.

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, mortgage credit availability decreased in April. The MCAI fell by 0.9% to a reading of 99.6 in April. A decline in the MCAI indicates that lending standards are tightening.

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) announced Tuesday the results of its Quarterly Survey of Commercial/Multifamily Mortgage Bankers Organizations. Commercial and multifamily mortgage loan originations in 2023Q1 were 56% lower year-over-year and 42% below 2022Q4.

A closer look at the Bureau of Labor Statistics April Nonfarm Payroll report reveals that overall construction sector employment increased by 15,000 in April. This follows a reported 11,000 jobs lost in March.

Statistics Canada reported Friday that employment in Canada increased by 41,000 jobs, or 0.2%, in April. Since February 2023, monthly employment growth has averaged 33,000.

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday that total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 253,000 in April. In the prior six months, job growth saw an average monthly gain of 290,000.

Freddie Mac has released its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® for the week ending May 4th. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.39%, up from last week when it averaged 6.43%. A year ago at this time, the 30-year rate averaged 5.27%.

According to the Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc. Job Cuts Report released Thursday, US-based employers announced 66,995 job cuts in April. This is down 25% from 89,703 announced cuts in March. However, it is up 176% from the 24,286 cuts announced in April 2022.

The US Department of Labor is reporting that the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial unemployment claims was 242,000 during the week ending on Saturday, April 29th. This is an increase of 13,000 from the previous week’s revised level of 229,000.

According to the report, the US national vacancy rate in Q1 was 6.4% for rental housing and 0.8% for homeowner housing. The rental vacancy rate was higher than the rate in 2022Q1, when it was 5.8%, and higher than the 2022Q4 rate, which was also 5.8%.