The U.S. Department of Labor is reporting that an additional 293,000 Americans made their initial filing for unemployment benefits during the week ending on Saturday, October 9, 2021. This is a decrease of 36,000 from the previous week’s revised level and the lowest level for initial job claims since March 14, 2020.
Wood Markets News
Segezha Group to Purchase All Assets of Inter Forest Rus. for $512 Million
Segezha Group has announced that it has agreed to purchase the assets of LLC Inter Forest Rus from Bonum Capital Ltd for $515 million. Inter Forest’s assets include wood processing and logging enterprises as well as four woodworking plants, one plywood plant, a river fleet of 98 vessels, and a substantial forest resource base in the Krasnoyarsk and Irkutsk regions of Russia.
Impact of Timber Lost to B.C.’s 2021 Summer Wildfire Season Could be Both Extreme and Long Lasting
Although the extent of the damage has yet to be fully assessed, estimates place the number of hectares burned at 900,000 hectares or 9,000 square kilometers. Depending on the severity of the burn, trees in fire zones may still be harvestable, but there is often a timeframe before harvest loses viability.
Koskisen Group Announces 48 Million Euro Investment in Kärkölä, Finland Facility
Koskisen Group, a family-owned Finnish sawmill and panel industry leader, has announced a 48 million Euro investment in Kärkölä, Finland. With production scheduled to start in the summer of 2023, the unit’s new annual production will initially be 400,000 m3 of softwood sawn timber.
Mass Timber Metro Station Under Construction in Naples, Italy as Part of a Major Infrastructure Upgrade
EMBT, the Barcelona-based studio, has revealed images of a mass-timber metro station which is currently under construction in the Centro Direzionale area of Naples, Italy. The Naples Underground Central Station is being built in a neighborhood designed by Japanese architect Kenzo Tange as part of a major upgrade to the city’s infrastructure.
Housing Affordability Improves for Second Consecutive Month in August
According to the latest National Association of Realtors’® Housing Affordability Index (HAI) report, U.S. housing affordability improved for the second consecutive month in August. Despite rising to 151.3 in August from a low of 146.5 in June 2021, the HAI is still well below its August 2020 level of 165.8.
September Consumer Price Index Increases 0.4% Month-Over-Month and 5.4% Year-Over-Year
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported on Wednesday (10-13-21) that the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) increased 0.4% in September, on a seasonally adjusted basis, after rising 0.3% in August. Over the past 12-months, the all-item index has increased 5.4% before seasonal adjustment.
Construction Job Openings Hold Steady in August
Further analysis of the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) August Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS), provided by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) with a look specifically on the construction sector, reveals that overall, the number of open construction jobs held steady in August.
Mortgage Applications Increase in the Week Ending October 8, 2021
According to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Application Survey (WMAS), for the week ending October 8, 2021, the Market Composite Index — a measure of mortgage loan application volume — increased 0.2% on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier.
West Fraser Enters into Agreement to Purchase Angelina Forest Products Lumber Mill in Lufkin, Texas
West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. announced today (10-12-21) that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Angelina Forest Products lumber mill located in Lufkin, Texas for approximately $300 million (USD), subject to certain post-closing adjustments. West Fraser is anticipating the transaction will close following successful completion of U.S. regulatory reviews and satisfaction of customary conditions.