News in end use

Ontario small businesses missed out on over $16 billion (CAD) in revenue opportunities in 2022 because they had to turn away contracts or sales due to a labor shortage, according to a report by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business reviewed by Ontario Construction News.

Total construction spending during October was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $2,027.1 billion, 0.6% above the revised September estimate.

The typical US homebuyer’s monthly mortgage payment during the four-week period ending November 26th was $2,575, down from $2,739 last month, Redfin reported.

Canadian employment was little changed in November, with 25,000, or 0.1%, new jobs created. This is the second consecutive month of little change.

The National Association of Realtors Pending Homes Sales Index declined 1.5% in October from September to a reading of 71.4. Year-over-year, pending homes sales declined 8.5%.

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 7.22%, down from last week when it averaged 7.29%, Freddie Mac said.

Homebuyer affordability declined in October, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association Purchase Applications Payment Index.

Canadian real gross domestic product (GDP) in Q3 declined 0.3% from Q2. The drop follows a 0.3% increase in Q2.

Personal income increased 0.2% in October; disposable personal income, personal income less personal current taxes, increased 0.3%; and ersonal consumption expenditures increased 0.2%.

The advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial unemployment claims was 218,000 during the week ending November 25th, an increase of 7,000 from the previous week.