News in end use


University of Michigan’s Consumer Sentiment Index Drops to 5-month Low in July’s Preliminary Report

The University of Michigan today (Friday 7-16-21) released its preliminary Consumer Sentiment Index (CSI) for July. Concerns about rising prices has led to a sharp drop in buying conditions for ‘big-ticket’ items and resulted in the decline. The CSI fell to a five-month low to a reading of 80.8 from 85.5 in June. Consumers expect inflation to rise 4.8% over the next year, the highest since August 2008.

Canadian Homes Sales Decline for Third Consecutive Month in June

Data released today (7-15-21) by the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) reports that Canadian national home sale decreased -8.4% between May and June 2021. This marks the third straight monthly decline since activity hit an all-time record in March 2021. While sales are now down a cumulative -25% from their peak, and below every other month in the last year, June transactions still managed to set a record for that month.

Remodeler Confidence Continued to Grow in Q2 2021

The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) today (7-15-21) released their Remodeling Market Index (RMI) for Q2 2021. The RMI posted a reading of 87, up 14 points from Q2 of 2020 and a sign of remodelers increasing confidence in their markets, for all size projects.

Bidding Wars Slow as More Available Homes Hit the Market

According to a recently released report from Redfin, the Seattle-based technology-powered real estate brokerage, the number of offers written by their agents that faced competition declined from 72.1% in May to 65% in June — well below the pandemic peak of 74.1% in April of this year. Nonetheless, that is higher than the 56.6% bidding war rate Redfin saw in June 2020.

Producer Price Index for Final Demand Increases 1.0% in June

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported today (7-14-21) that the Producer Price Index for final demand, seasonally adjusted, increased 1.0% in June. Final demand prices rose 0.8% in May, 0.6% in April, 1.0% in March and 0.5% in February. On an unadjusted basis, the final demand index moved up 7.3% for the 12 months ended in June.

Mortgage Applications Jump 16.0% in the Week Ending July 9, 2021, Ending 2-week Downturn

According to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Application Survey, for the week ending July 9, 2021, the Market Composite Index — a measure of mortgage loan application volume, which includes an adjustment for the 4th of July holiday — increased 16.0% on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased -7% compared with the previous week.