The USDA announced awards of nearly $335 million to strengthen financial incentives for private forest landowners to manage their forests sustainably and to permanently conserve private forests in partnership with states.
Wood Markets News
US Producer Price Index for Final Demand Rises 0.4% in November
The Producer Price Index for final demand, seasonally adjusted, increased 0.4% in November. Final demand prices had increased 0.3% in October.
ABC Construction Backlog Indicator Unchanged in November
The ABC Construction Backlog Indicator (CBI) held steady at a reading of 8.4 months in November. The reading is down 0.1 months from November 2023.
US Mortgage Rates Decline for Third Consecutive Week
The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.60%, down from last week when it averaged 6.69%, Freddie Mac reported.
US Weekly Initial Jobless Claims Increase in the Week Ending December 7th
The advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial unemployment claims was 242,000, an increase of 17,000 from the previous week’s revised level.
Bank of Canada Lowers Interest Rates by 50 Basis Points
The Bank of Canada has reduced its target for the overnight rate by 50 basis points to 3.25%.
Canfor Acquires Additional Outstanding Shares of VIDA
Canfor has increased its ownership of VIDA to 77% by acquiring an additional 7% of outstanding shares from minority shareholders.
US Consumer Price Index Increases 2.7% Year-Over-Year in November
The CPI increased 0.3% on a seasonally adjusted basis in November. This follows the previous four consecutive months increasing at a 0.2% rate.
US Asking Rents in November Fall to Lowest Level Since March 2022
The median US asking rent fell 0.7% year-over-year to $1,595 in November, the lowest level since March 2022, Redfin reported.
USNR Expands, Acquiring Sweden’s Sågteknik
USNR recently shared that is has acquired Sågteknik i Södermanland, a sawmill technology company in Sweden.