News in end use

The U.S. Department of Labor is reporting that an additional 229,000 Americans (seasonally adjusted) made their initial filing for unemployment benefits during the week ending on Saturday, June 11, 2022. This is a decline of 3,000 from the previous week’s revised level. The 4-week moving average was 218,500.

According to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, the trend in housing starts in May were at 254,727 units, down from April’s reported 257,833 units. The trend measure is a six-month average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR) of housing starts.

According to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Mortgage Application Survey, for the week ending June 10, 2022, the Market Composite Index (a measure of mortgage loan application volume) increased 6.6% on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index increased 17.0%.

The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) reported on Wednesday that builder sentiment in the market for newly built single-family homes fell 2 points lower in June to a reading of 67. This is the sixth consecutive month that builder sentiment has declined, and it is at its lowest level since June 2020.

According to CoreLogic’s latest loan performance report, which was released on Tuesday, approximately 2.7% of all mortgages in the U.S. were delinquent in March—a new historic low for the report. Year-over-year, it is a decline of -2.2% from the 4.9% posted in March of 2021. All 50 states posted annual declines.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today that the Producer Price Index for final demand, seasonally adjusted, increased 0.8% in May. This rise followed advances of 0.4% in April, 1.6% in March, 1.1% in February, and 1.2% in January. On an unadjusted basis, final demand prices moved up 10.8% for the 12 months ending in May.

Realtor.com has updated its 2022 home buying forecast to better account for rising inflation and mortgage rates. The update predicts that home inventory will grow double-digits above 2021, which in turn will offer buyers a better-than-expected chance of finding a home. The forecast anticipates a summer break from the intense pace of home sales.

The National Federation of Independent Business reported today their NFIB Small Business Optimism Index (SBOI) for May. According to the report, the May SBOI fell below the 48-year average reading of 98 for the fifth consecutive month to a reading in May of 93.1. That is -0.1 points below the April reading and a new record low for the index.

Statistics Canada reported today that investment in building construction rose by 2.7% to $20.9 billion (CAD) in April. Increases were reported in both residential, up 3.2%, and non-residential, up 1.4%. On a constant dollar basis (2012=100), investment in build construction grew 3.5% to $13.0 billion.

According to new analysis from Redfin, the Seattle-based, technology-powered real estate brokerage firm, homebuyer budgets are essentially flat from last year, up only 0.3% year-over-year in for the 3-month period ending April 30, 2022. That is slowest rate of growth since June of 2020.