According to one Australian forestry sector representative, China’s indefinite suspension of timber exported out Australia’s Victoria region could actually help boost Green Triangle’s processing industry. Industry sources estimate the Green Triangle timber export industry underpins around 1,000 jobs in the south-east of South Australia (SA) and western Victoria.
Wood Markets News
Kenya Faces Shortage of Timber Just as the Country’s Needs Increase
Kenya’s demand for wood and wood products is increasing faster than their outdated sawmills and lack of forestlands can produce. A logging ban, imposed in 2018 by the Kenyan government, which applies only to government owned land, which is mainly mahogany, cypress and eucalyptus, which was meant to help regenerate its forests has made the situation even more dire, albeit needed.
National Association of Realtors® Reports Metro Home Prices Increased in All Areas in Q3 2020
The National Association of Realtors® (NAR) is reporting in their latest quarterly report that due in large part to record-low mortgage rates and depleted nationwide housing inventory, median single-family home prices grew year-over-year in all 181-metropolitan statistical areas tracked by NAR, as every measured market showed sales price gains.
Builders Report that in Q3 Credit Remained Tight and was More Expensive
According to the latest from the latest National Association of Home Builders survey on financing for Acquisitions, Development and Construction (AD&C) while lenders continued to report tightening credit in Q3, borrowers reported little change in credit availability.
Trade Hostilities Between Australia and China Intensify
China officially announced a ban of logs shipped from Victoria.
Foreclosures Increase in October, Despite Ongoing Moratorium
ATTOM Data Solutions, a multi-sourced national property database, is reporting that despite a moratorium on foreclosures, in October, 6,042 U.S. properties were in the early phase of the foreclosure process. That is number is up 21% from September but remain -79% below the October 2019 level.
Consumer Price Index Unchanged in October
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is reporting that the Consumer Price Index (CPI), excluding the volatile food and energy components (“core” CPI) was unchanged in October on a seasonally adjusted basis after rising 0.2% in September.
Builder Activity Close to Traditional Mid-November Levels
Dealers responding to FEA’s Weekly Order Survey are reporting that their sales are in close alignment with traditional mid-November levels. A small number of dealers did mention that a few projects that had been postponed in Q3 were in the process of beginning to ramp up with materials scheduled to begin shipping to the jobsite early to mid-next week.
Mortgage Rates Push Higher in the Week Ending November 12th, 2020
Freddie Mac has released its Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS) for the week ending November 12th, 2020. The PMMS shows that 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 2.84% with an average 0.7 point, up from last week when it averaged 2.78%. A year ago, at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 3.75%.
Weekly Jobless Claims Continued Their Decline in the Week Ending November 7th, 2020
The U.S. Department of Labor is reporting that an additional 709,000 Americans made their initial filing for unemployment benefits during the week ending on Saturday November 7th. A decrease of 48,000 from the previous week’s revised level.