“Electric vehicles are having a moment,” said auto market expert Bernard Swiecki – a moment likely to last for years. Swiecki’s Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, Mich., is spending much of its time studying the sudden and surging interest in the various forms of low- or zero-emission electric vehicles (EVs), from plug-in hybrids, […]
Construction employment declined or stagnated in 101 metro areas between February 2020, the last month before the pandemic, and last month, reported the Associated General Contractors of America in its latest analysis of government data. Labor shortages and supply chain challenges have kept many firms from adding workers in various parts of the country, said […]
General Motors has extended chip-related outages to assembly plants that make its highly sought-after pickup trucks. The Detroit-based automaker, the largest in the U.S., had previously tried to shield truck plants from the impacts of the semiconductor shortage. Here is the latest: • General Motor’s assembly plant in Flint, Mich., will operate on one production […]
Sales of new single-family homes fell in June for the fifth time in six months, landing at 6.6% below May’s downward revised estimate at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 676,000, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau reported on Monday. Sales fell by 19.4% when compared to the […]
Daimler AG has recognized Big River Steel (BRS) for its “exceptionally sustainable” steel. The electric arc furnace (EAF) producer, a U.S. Steel subsidiary, has helped the German automaker reduce the CO2 emissions attributed to the steel used in its Mercedes-Benz products by more than 70%. Emission-free mobility is a corporate goal for Damiler, which thinks climate […]
Existing-home sales rose in June, ending a four-month decline, reported the National Association of Realtors. Three of the four major U.S. regions registered small month-over-month gains, while the South was sideways. All four areas saw double-digit gains year on year. June sales rose 1.4% from May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.86 million. […]
Builder confidence slip modestly in July on high raw material costs and a shortage of skilled labor, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). The index edged down one point to a reading of 80 last month. The dip in the index – a measure of builder confidence in […]
Housing starts accelerated in June, jumping 6.3% from May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.64 million units, according to the latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Single-family starts increased 6.3% to a 1.16 million seasonally adjusted annual rate, while construction on homes of five […]
General Motors and Stellantis have extended downtime at some of their North American plants into August because of the ongoing chip shortage. The latest development means all Detroit-area “Big Three” automakers will be grappling with shortages of semiconductors and other parts into next month. Dearborn, Mich.-based Ford – the crosstown rival of GM and Stellantis […]
Testifying before Congress last week, National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) CEO Jerry Howard called on lawmakers to enact key policies that will ensure access to good housing for all Americans. During the subcommittee hearing, Howard noted that such policies will help home builders expand the housing supply, reduce the housing deficit and improve housing […]
Construction employment trails pre-pandemic levels in more than three-quarters of U.S. states, reports the Associated General Contractors of America in its latest analysis of government data. June’s employment totals in 39 states show that the construction sector remained below the levels reached before the pre-pandemic peak in February 2020. Supply chain challenges and rising materials prices […]
Unprecedented price increases for a wide range of goods and services used in construction pushed up contractors’ costs by a devastating 26.3% from June 2020 to June 2021, according to an analysis of government data by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials cautioned that rising materials prices are making it difficult for many […]
May heating and cooling equipment shipments rose 1.3% from April, now at 2.18 million units, according to recent data from the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI). This is now the fourth-highest level in SMU’s history, with the shipment record occuring in June 2020 at 2.28 million units, followed by June 2018 then March 2021. […]
The U.S. construction sector lost momentum in May as the industry continues to deal with the effects of the COVID pandemic. Growth remains uneven across sectors as many continue to work through supply chain disruptions, rising materials prices and labor shortages. Total construction spending during May, at a seasonally adjusted annual rate, was $1.545 trillion, […]
The Dodge Momentum Index has fallen for the first time this year – and after six consecutive months of gains – on uneven demand and higher costs. The index now stands at 165.8, down 5% from a revised May number of 175.1, according to Hamilton, N.J.-based Dodge Data & Analytics. “Uncertain demand for some building […]
Auto assemblies in North America rose further in June despite a continued struggle with the global semiconductor shortage. Some automakers in the region—including GM and Toyota—were able to ramp up production and shipments after securing enough microchips, pushing the annual rate in the North American region up by 16.4% month on month, according to LMC […]
Supply chain disruptions, rising materials prices and labor shortages continued to slow construction spending in May, reported the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC). Officials with the association called on the Biden administration to remove tariffs on key construction materials, allow unemployment supplements that are keeping people out of the workforce to expire and take steps to […]
Construction employment declined again in June, the fourth time in the past five months, according to an analysis of government data by the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC). Construction employment totaled 7,410,000 in June, down 7,000 from the revised May total. The June total remained 238,000 or 3.1% below February 2020, before the pandemic stalled […]
Ford plans to idle or reduce production at nearly all its North American assembly plants in July – and in some instances into early August – because of a shortage of chips and other parts. “While we continue to manufacture new vehicles, we’re prioritizing completing our customers’ vehicles that were assembled without certain parts due to […]
Sales of new single-family homes in May slipped 5.9% from April’s downward revised estimate to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 769,000, the Commerce Department reported on Wednesday. Sales were 9.2% higher than in May 2020. Sales declined in four of the last five months, falling from the 12-month peak of 993,000 homes sold in […]
Existing-home sales fell for the fourth month in a row in May, reports the National Association of Realtors. Sales rose 16% from April in the Midwest but declined in the South, East and West. On a year-over-year basis, sales rose by double-digits in all regions. Sales fell 0.9% from April to a seasonally adjusted annual […]
Some automakers have ramped up production and shipments after securing enough microchips, but others continue to struggle with the global semiconductor shortage. Stellantis (formerly Chrysler) will idle is assembly plants in Belvidere, Ill.; Windsor, Ontario; and Toluca, Mexico, for the rest of June “due to the unprecedented global microchip shortage,” a company spokeswoman said. The […]
General Motors continues to ramp up production thanks to an increased supply of microchips, a company spokesman said. The Detroit-based automaker, the largest in the U.S, has also decided not to take typical summer downtime at some plants as it looks to make up for production lost earlier in the year because of a global chip […]
Housing starts picked up the pace in May, jumping 3.6% from April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,572,000, according to the latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Single-family starts rose 4.2% and construction on homes of five units or more increased 4%. “Single-family starts […]
Easing pressure on construction costs and supply-chain bottlenecks is at a tipping point, the Associated General Contactors of America (AGC) said, urging the Biden administration to end tariffs and quotas on steel, aluminum, and lumber at once. The cost of goods and services used in construction climbed by a record-setting 4.3% in May and 24.3% […]
April heating and cooling equipment shipments declined 4.1% from March, now at 2.15 million units, according to recent data from the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI). This is the fourth-highest level in SMU’s history, with the record occuring in June 2020 at 2.28 million units, followed by June 2018 then March 2021. April levels are […]
The Dodge Momentum Index soared 9.1% to register 178.0 in May due to a brisk increase in commercial planning activity. The May report marks the seventh consecutive gain for the index. Several large data center, office and warehouse projects entered the planning phase last month resulting in a 13-year high for the commercial component of […]
Construction employment fell for the third time in the past four months, according to an analysis of government data by the Associated General Contractors of America. Construction employment fell by 20,000 jobs from the downwardly revised April data to a seasonally adjusted employment total of 7,423,000. The total in May remained 225,000 less than in […]
U.S. auto sales were hot again in May with passenger cars adding to record sales for some brands. Honda and Hyundai saw sales jump over 50% year-over-year, while Toyota division sales leapt 47% and Lexus 49%. IHS Markit estimates U.S. auto sales were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 16.6 million to 17 million […]
The following article was reprinted with permission from John Burns Real Estate Consulting. True statements can lead to misleading conclusions, especially in a busy world full of sound bites and analysis limited to 280 characters. Thank you to one of our clients for several long exchanges that pushed me to clarify our thinking on numerous […]