Articles

Privately‐owned housing starts in May were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,549,000, 14.4% below the revised April estimate of 1,810,000 and 3.5% below the May 2021 rate of 1,605,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Read More

Due to a decrease in non-residential spending, some commercial markets experienced a considerable dip during the pandemic (corporate, for example, as many more people worked from home). But activity is returning, and several markets are doing quite well — particularly, healthcare and education — resulting in new innovations around high-performing hard and soft surface products, or hybrid alternatives, to meet the need for mixed-use spaces and added flexibility. Read More

In the months January to April 2022, U.S. ceramic tile imports were down 7.0% in square meters year over year, from 66.5 million square meter to 61.9 million square meter, according to Grosser Consulting. While imports in quantity were down in this period, values were up. Read More

Consumer sentiment slid 14% to 50.2 in early June, according to preliminary results from the University of Michigan Survey of Consumers. Read More

The World Bank forecasts the economy to grow at a rate of 2.5% in 2022, reports the Wall Street Journal. Read More

New findings from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) Home Building Geography Index (HBGI) show that the rate of year-over-year single-family construction growth in small and large metro urban, suburban and rural regional submarkets slowed in the first quarter of 2022 compared to the same time period as last year, with notable deceleration in large suburban markets. In contrast, multifamily growth in large population centers has rebounded from negative growth rates and posted sharp gains during the same time period. Read More

The count of open construction jobs jumped to a record-high 449,000 unfilled positions in April, according to the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is the highest measure in the history of the data series, which dates back to late 2000. Read More

Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 390,000 in May, and the unemployment rate remained at 3.6%, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. Read More

Nonfarm business sector labor productivity decreased 7.3% in Q1 2022, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported, as output decreased 2.3% and hours worked increased 5.4%. Read More

Home prices made a 20.6% annual gain in March, up from 20.0% in the previous month, the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index, covering all nine U.S. census divisions, reported. Read More