News in end use

Canada has announced that it is preparing to initiate a new tax on foreign non-resident speculative purchases of homes in the country. The new tax was mentioned in the Fall Economic Statement, which was published on Monday (12/1), but offered few details.

According to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Application Survey, for the week ending November 27th, 2020, the Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased -0.6% on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased -32% compared with the previous week.

Analysis provided by the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) of recently release government data reveals that construction employment in October remained depressed compared to pre-pandemic levels in three-fourths of states. This in spite of the fact 36 states and D.C. added new construction jobs in October.

A growing trend identified by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) Home Building Geography Index (HBGI) in Q2 of housing being built in lower-density areas, has continued into Q3. As single-family and multifamily construction continued to overperform in lower cost markets – i.e. the suburbs and exurbs.

Statistics Canada reported today (12/1) the real gross domestic product (GDP) in Canada expanded at a rate of 8.9% in Q3 of 2020. This following an -11.3% fall in Q2 of 2020 and a -1.9% drop in Q1.

The U.S. Census Bureau has announced that total construction spending during October 2020 was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1,438.5 billion, 1.3% above the revised September estimate of $1,420.4 billion. The October figure is 3.7% above the October 2019 estimate.

The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) is reporting that personal income declined in October to a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of $19,726 billion. The -0.7% reflects the tapering of government economic recovery payments.

The National Association of Realtors® (NAR) has reported their Pending Homes Sales Index (PHSI), which is based on signed real estate contracts, not actual closings, for existing single-family homes, condos, and co-ops, declined for the second straight month in a row failing -1.1% in October to a reading of 128.9.

According to the “second” estimate released today (11/25) by The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) the Real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) increased at an annual rate of 33.1% in Q3 of 2020. In Q2 of 2020, the real GDP decreased -31.4%.