A dry winter and early heat waves have the entire State of California is in the grip of drought, much of it classified as extreme or exceptional. So far this year, the number of wildfires and the amount of land burned in bone dry California has greatly exceed totals for the same period in the disastrous wildfire year of 2020. Between 1st January 1, 2021 and July 4, 2021, there have been 4,599 separate fires that have scorched 114.8 square miles.
Wood Markets News
Moelven Announces $70 million Investment to Upgrade and Increase Capacity at Two Swedish Sawmills
Moelven Industriers ASA has announced that they will be investing more than SEK 600 million ($70 million) in modernizing and increasing capacity at two of their sawmills in the years to come. At the Moelven Edanesågen AB facility, the entire production process from timber sorting, timber intake, will include a new saw line and new dryer that will increase the mills capacity.
Fannie Mae’s Home Purchasing Sentiment Index Reveals Changes in Buyer and Seller Outlooks
Fannie Mae on Wednesday (7-7-21) released their Home Purchasing Sentient Index® (HPSI) for June. Overall, the HPSI was little changed, decreasing by -0.3 points to a reading of 79.7. This occurred despite even greater volatility among its underlying components.
African Forestry and Timber Trading Firm Woodbois Limited Reports Improved Revenues in H1 2021
Woodbois Limited, an African forestry and timber trading firm, has reported increased revenues in the first 6-months of 2021 and expects sawn timber output to grow by 30% in the remain 6-months of the year. Woodbois, with sawmilling and veneer operations in Gabon, recorded revenues of US$8.2 million in the first 6-months of 2021, up from US$6.7 million, in the previous six-month period.
Mortgage Rates Drop to 2.90% in the Week Ending July 8, 2021
Freddie Mac has released its Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS) for the week ending July 8, 2021. The PMMS reports that 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 2.90% with an average 0.6 point, down from last week when it averaged 2.98%. A year ago, at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 3.03%.
Weekly Jobless Claims Decline in the Week Ending July 3, 2021
The U.S. Department of Labor is reporting that an additional 373,000 Americans made their initial filing for unemployment benefits during the week ending on Saturday, July 3, 2021. This is an increase of 2,000 from the previous week’s revised level. The 4-week moving average was 394,500, a decrease of 250 from the previous week’s revised average.
Bark Beetle Infestation and Drought Creates Dangerous Wildfire Conditions in California Forested Lands
The bark beetle infestation that destroyed large portions of forest in the southern Sierra Nevada’s has moved into the North State, killing millions of trees and adding fuel to an already dangerous wildfire season. And according to the U.S. Forest Service, the federal agency responsible for managing much of California’s forested lands, it is a problem that won’t be going away anytime soon.
Despite a Hot Housing Market Job Openings in the Construction Sector Decline in May
A deeper dive into the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) May 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 the number of open construction jobs decline in May to 299,000 unfiled positions.
Job Opening and Labor Turnover Survey for May 2021
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) today (7-7-21) reported its Job Opening and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) for May 2021. According to the JOLTS report, as of the last business day in May, the number and rate of job openings was little changed at 9.2 million.
Mortgage Applications Drop for Second Week in a Row Down -1.8% in the Week Ending July 2nd, 2021
According to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Application Survey, for the week ending July 2nd , 2021, the Market Composite Index , a measure of mortgage loan application volume decreased -1.8% percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier.