Wood Markets News


Canadian Home Sales Slow Further in May 2022

The Canadian Real Estate Association reported on Tuesdaythat national homes sales recorded over Canadian MLS® Systems declined by -8.6% between April and May. This builds on a larger drop recorded in April, leaving monthly activity at pre-COVID levels recorded in the second half of 2019 and only slightly above the 10-year average.

Sweden’s Setra Now Offering Cross-Laminated Timber Frames With Moisture Protection

Lesprom Network is reportingthat Setra, one of Sweden’s largest wood industry companies, is the first company in Sweden to offer a new moisture protection for frames made from cross-laminated timber. The moisture protection, Wetguard200SA, is manufactured by Siga Cover AG, a Swiss company, and is applied to surfaces such as floor structures.

Mortgage Rates Surge Higher in the Week Ending June 16, 2022

Freddie Mac has released its Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS) for the week ending June 16, 2022. The PMMS reports that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 5.78% with an average 0.9 point, up from last week when it averaged 5.23%. This is the largest one week increase since 1987.

Weekly Jobless Claims Inch Lower in the Week Ending June 11, 2022

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.

Canadian Housing Starts Trend Lower in May 2022

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.

Mortgage Applications Jump 6.6% in the Week Ending June 10, 2022

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%.