Irrespective of the GM strike, light vehicle assemblies in North America slowed through October. This report is based on data from LMC Automotive for automotive assemblies in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. The breakdown of assemblies is “Personal” (cars for personal use) and “Commercial” (light vehicles less than 6.0 tonnes gross vehicle weight rating). Heavy […]
New home sales in October dipped slightly from September, down 0.7 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 733,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The dip, however, occurred after the September sales estimate was revised upward to 738,000 from 701,000. Sales for the past […]
Data from S&P Dow Jones Indices show that home prices in the U.S. increased modestly in September. The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA posted an annual gain of 3.2 percent, up from 3.1 percent in August. The 20-City Composite rose 2.1 percent year-over-year, a 0.1 percent gain from the previous month. “September’s […]
Forty-one states and the District of Columbia added construction jobs between October 2018 and October 2019, while construction employment increased in 28 states from September to October, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of Labor Department data. “Construction employment continues to experience robust growth in most parts of the country,” […]
Existing home sales had a slight recovery in October, according to the National Association of Realtors. Sales of existing homes, including single-family, townhomes, condos and co-ops, increased 1.9 percent from September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.46 million. Sales were up 4.6 percent from October 2018. “Historically low interest rates, continuing job expansion, […]
United Auto Workers have ratified a new four-year contract with Ford with the approval by 56.3 percent of union members. The new contract includes a $9,000 signing bonus for full-time workers, performance bonuses, two 3 percent annual raises and two 4 percent lump sum payments. Health care costs remain unchanged. “Every Ford employee and temporary […]
Housing starts grew 3.8 percent from September to October to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,314,000 and rose 8.5 percent from October 2018, according to the latest report from the Commerce Department and U.S. Housing and Urban Development. Single-family housing starts were up 2 percent from September and housing starts in buildings of five […]
September heating and cooling equipment shipments came in at 1.58 million units, down 0.4 percent from the same month one year ago, according to recent data from the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI). Residential and commercial storage water heater shipments rose 2.2 percent year over year to a combined 674,144 units; 654,894 units were […]
The last few weeks have been busy ones for the U.S. auto industry. A 40-day strike by the United Auto Workers at General Motors ended with ratification of a new four-year labor agreement, allowing negotiations to move forward at Ford. Ford negotiations wrapped up in just three days with a tentative agreement now ready to […]
Commerce Department Construction Put in Place (CPIP) data for September confirms the contraction that began in June 2019. CPIP expenditures data for September was released on Nov 1. Through September, total construction had negative momentum every month since October last year. In the period June through September, total construction declined each month on a year-over-year […]
The Associated General Contractors of America maintains that trade fights with China, the EU and other countries are undermining demand for private sector construction projects. “The best way to make sure our economy continues to expand is to quickly resolve a series of trade disputes that have contributed to business uncertainty and likely held back […]
FCA and Peugeot announced a $48 billion merger on Thursday that will make the combined company the fourth largest automaker in the world. The 50/50 merger will have combined revenues of nearly $190 billion and annual unit sales of about 8.6 million vehicles. Together the company will employ roughly 410,000 employees. Peugeot parent PSA Group […]
The United Auto Workers and Ford Motor Co. have announced a tentative agreement just three days after talks began in “earnest” on Monday. “Our national negotiators elected by their local unions have voted to recommend to the UAW-Ford National Council the proposed tentative agreement,” said UAW Vice President Rory Gamble. “Our negotiating team worked diligently […]
The Associated General Contractors of America are calling for comprehensive immigration reform and additional workforce funding to address a shortage of qualified labor. Despite the widespread job gains, AGC’s latest survey found 80 percent of contractors say hourly craftworker positions remain difficult to fill. Construction employment grew in 244, or 68 percent, out of 358 […]
Home prices rose in August but at a slowing pace, says S&P Dow Jones Indices. The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index reported a 3.2 percent annual gain compared to 3.1 percent in July. An annual gain of 1.5 percent was reported for the 10-City Composite compared to 1.6 percent in July. […]
United Auto Workers have moved on to negotiations with Ford now that a new labor agreement has been approved at General Motors. Preliminary negotiations have been ongoing since July 15, but talks have now ramped up as the UAW-Ford team puts together a final contract for the 55,000 Ford union workers. Rory Gamble, UAW-Ford vice […]
United Auto Workers at General Motors approved a labor deal on Friday ending a 40-day strike that disrupted operations for GM and its suppliers. About 57 percent of GM’s 49,000 union workers voted in favor of ratifying the new four-year agreement. “General Motors members have spoken,” said Terry Dittes, UAW Vice President and Director of […]
Total North American light vehicle assemblies were down by 3.0 percent year over year in three months through August. This report is based on data from LMC Automotive for automotive assemblies in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. The breakdown of assemblies is “Personal” (cars for personal use) and “Commercial” (light vehicles less than 6.0 tonnes […]
New home sales remained relatively stable in September, slipping only 0.7 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 701,000. The August rate was revised downward to 706,000. “New home sales inched down in September, but the ongoing trend remains positive as builders increase their production,” said Greg Ugalde, chairman of the National Association of […]
Existing home sales fell 2.2. percent from August to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.38 million in September, says the National Association of Realtors. The decline followed two consecutive months of gain. Sales in the Midwest fell the hardest but all four regions saw declines. Higher home prices due to insufficient inventory was partially to […]
Construction jobs increased in 39 states and the District of Columbia between September 2018 and September 2019, while construction employment increased in 28 states from August to September, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of the latest Labor Department data. “Although evidence is mounting that the overall economy is slowing, […]
The United Auto Workers and General Motors reportedly reached a tentative four-year labor agreement on Tuesday, but it remains unclear how quickly operations will resume and how long before the automotive supply chain gets back to normal. The union has been on strike since Sept. 16, resulting in 30 facility closures and layoffs at GM plants […]
Housing starts fell 9.4 percent in September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,256,000, well below the August revised rate of 1,386,000 due mostly to a large decline in the multifamily sector. Single-family housing rose 0.3 percent from August, while units in buildings of five units or more plummeted 28.3 percent. All four regions […]
Negotiations continued between the United Auto Workers and General Motors on Saturday afternoon. On Friday, the UAW presented a counter to the proposal GM submitted on Monday. Recent comments by the union hint that a possible tentative agreement may be in the works. “A short time ago, today, Friday, Oct. 11, 2019, we counterproposed to […]
August heating and cooling equipment shipments came in at 1.85 million units for the month, up 4.7 percent over the same month one year ago, according to data recently released by the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI). This is the second consecutive month that total monthly equipment shipments have increased on a year-over-year basis […]
Commerce Department Construction Put in Place (CPIP) data for August, released Oct. 1, shows total construction has had negative momentum every month since October last year. In the months June, July and August, total construction declined for the first time since November 2011, according to Steel Market Update’s analysis of the Commerce data. At SMU, […]
The Dodge Momentum Index gained 4.1 percent for a reading of 143.6 in September due to an increase in plans for commercial construction projects. The commercial component jumped 8.9 percent while the institutional component fell 4.8 percent. The Momentum Index, issued by Dodge Data & Analytics, is a monthly measure of the first report for […]
The United Auto Workers’ strike against General Motors is in its 23rd day. After the union rejected a counterproposal from GM on Sunday, UAW-GM Vice President Terry DIttes commented, “These negotiations have taken a turn for the worse.” “We, in this union, could not be more disappointed with General Motors,” he said, adding that the […]
Construction employment continues to lag behind demand as a worker shortage continues. Construction employment grew in 252 out of 358 metro areas between August 2018 and August 2019, declined in 60 and was unchanged in 46, according to a new analysis of federal employment data released by the Associated General Contractors of America. A recent […]
United Auto Workers are in their third week of a strike against General Motors. The back and forth of negotiations continue with the union reportedly rejecting a counterproposal offered by GM on Monday. In a letter to union representatives on Tuesday, Terry Dittes, UAW GM vice president and director, outlined the problems with the proposal: […]