Eye On Housing
Overall, the price of materials inputs to residential construction declined 1.8% in December (not seasonally adjusted) according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. While most building materials prices showed little movement in December, prices paid for OSB fell by double digits for the second consecutive month. OSB prices declined 12.0% (NSA) in… Read More ›
The pace of headline inflation slowed from 0.3% in October to 0.0% in November as energy prices declined sharply. The Consumer Price Index (CPI), reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), was unchanged in November on a seasonally adjusted basis, following a 0.3% increase in October. The “core” CPI, which excludes the volatile food and energy components, increased by… Read More ›
Softwood lumber prices fell 3.0% in November the second consecutive decrease for the index to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The producer price index for softwood lumber has fallen 23.6% (not seasonally adjusted) since setting cycle and all-time highs in June (see below). After the decrease, the index level is 9.6% lower… Read More ›
Residential construction goods input prices declined, on average, in August as large monthly increases and decreases offset each other, according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) release by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Although the index for inputs to residential construction fell by 0.5% (not seasonally adjusted), it has increased more than twice as much in 2018 (+4.9%) as… Read More ›
The prices of residential construction materials were unchanged in July, according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) release by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Increases in prices paid for OSB (+7.0%, not seasonally adjusted) and gypsum products (+2.0%, seasonally adjusted) were offset by declines in softwood lumber (-2.5%, NSA) and ready-mix concrete (-1.5%, SA). July marked the first time… Read More ›
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that, on a seasonally adjusted basis, headline consumer prices, grew over the month of June, but at a slower pace than in May. The monthly slowdown partly reflected a decline in energy prices, electricity and utility (piped) gas specifically, although food prices accelerated over the month. Excluding energy and food prices, “core” inflation held… Read More ›
The prices of building materials generally increased in June, according to the latest Producer Price Index (PPI) release by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. For the second consecutive month, softwood lumber (+4.0%) led the way, followed by oriented strand board (+2.2%, not seasonally adjusted). Similarly, the indexes for ready-mix concrete (-0.3%) and gypsum products (-0.6%) both declined for the second… Read More ›
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that consumer inflation rose by 0.2 percent in May, similar to its growth rate in April. Both food and energy prices decelerated over the month, but the slowdown in these items was offset by an acceleration in core CPI to 0.2 percent, from 0.1 percent in April. Over the year, headline inflation climbed… Read More ›
Following a decline in March, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that consumer prices rose by 0.2 percent over the month of April, largely reflecting energy and food prices as well as shelter prices. Excluding energy and food prices, “core” inflation decelerated from 0.2 percent to 0.1 percent as shelter prices, which represent the largest share of the consumer price… Read More ›
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that consumer inflation fell by 0.1 percent over the month of March 2018 following a 0.2 percent increase in February. This is first monthly decrease since May 2017. Energy prices fell by 3 percent over the month as gasoline prices were 4.9 percent lower than their level in February. In contrast, core CPI, which… Read More ›