The Conference Board — a non-partisan, not-for-profit think tank founded in 1916 — released today (7-27-21) their Consumer Confidence Index® (CCI) for July 2021. The CCI was little changed in July, following five consecutive monthly gains. The Index now stands at 129.1 (1985=100), up slightly from June’s 128.9 reading.
Wood Markets News
Despite Modest Uptick in New Requests, Shares of Mortgages in Forbearance Decline for 21st Consecutive Week During the Week Ending July 18, 2021
The latest Mortgage Banker Association’s (MBA) Forbearance and Call Survey reports that the total number of loans now in forbearance fell by 2 basis points from 3.50% of servicers’ portfolio volume in the prior week to 3.48% as of July 18, 2021. According to MBA’s estimate, 1.74 million homeowners are in forbearance plans.
More than 85 Large Wildfires Have Already Burned 1.4 Million Acres Across the U.S.
There are more than 85 large wildfires burning throughout the U.S., most of them are in Western states. To date they have burned over 1.4 million acres.
New Home Sales Tumble for Third Month in a Row in June 2021
The U.S. Census Bureau reported that new residential single-family home sales for June 2021 were at a SAAR of 676,000, according to estimates. This is -6.6% below the revised May rate of 724,000 and is -19.4% below the June 2020 estimate of 839,000.
More than 250 Wildfires Continue to Burn in British Columbia
The B.C. Wildfire Service is reporting that there are 257 wildfires currently burning throughout the province. That is one less than was being reported at the Saturday update and down from about 300 being reported earlier in the week. Nonetheless, there are still 58 evacuations orders in place that are impacting about 4,400 properties.
Hunt Forest Products and Tolko Industries Announce a Joint Venture to Build a New State-of-the Art Sawmill in Bienville, Louisiana
Hunt Forest Products and Tolko Industries today (7-26-21) announced that they intended to build a $240 million, state-of-the-art sawmill in Bienville Parish near Taylor, Louisiana. The new sawmill project is a joint venture between Hunt Forest Products and Tolko.
Fire Destroys Sawmill Manufacturing Building at Glidden Lumber Co. in Parkman, Maine
A fire last Tuesday (7-20-21) morning destroyed the main sawmill manufacturing building at Glidden Lumber Company in Parkman, Maine. Local officials believe that a faulty piece of machinery was the cause of the blaze.
Nation’s Housing Report for 2021 — from The Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University
The Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University (JCHS) has just released their 40-page State of the Nation’s Housing report for 2021. The report examines a year’s worth of data, trends and issues that are impacting the housing industry. This includes housing policy, market trends, household growth and composition, homeownership, affordability issues, rental markets, and more.
Central Alabama Wood Products Goes High Tech
In June of 2020 when many companies were fighting to keep their doors open, Central Alabama Wood Products, located in Coosa County, Alabama, made the decision to make a major investment in their mill and their future. Pat McGinn with Central Alabama Wood Products notes that “We make a lot of lumber and cross ties here.”
B.C. Premier Calls for Provincial Forestry Companies to Share Profits and Equipment to Help with Wildfires
British Columbia’s Premier John Horgan, while touring the Southeast Fire Centre in Castlegar on Wednesday (7-21), said that he expected other companies to follow the lead of Canfor Corp. in shutting down operations as trains, roads, and forest activity are disrupted by wildfires.