FORECASTS
NAHB Optimistic for Continued Construction Growth
Optimism reigned during the National Association of Home Builders’ (NAHB) recent Construction Forecast webinar. David Crowe, NAHB chief economist, opened the session by pointing out how nicely it coincided with the Census Bureau’s release of good news in the area of housing starts, a “nice solid increase of 15-percent housing starts … and a similar increase in housing permits.” Crowe called this “solid evidence” that “recovery is underway.”

Survey Says Remodeling Industry Plagued by Uncertainty
The National Association of the Remodeling Industry’s (NARI) third-quarter Remodeling Business Pulse data of current and future remodeling business conditions is positive overall but there are mixed sentiments about the future and challenges still to overcome.

National results placed predictions in the next three months at their weakest point this year, dropping 6.3 percent since the second quarter. More specifically, this quarter’s data attributes future declines to the following: high uncertainty at 76 percent, unemployment at 24 percent, and difficulty in acquiring loans, also at 24 percent.

What has stayed consistent is the overall business conditions data which shows a majority of NARI members feeling positive about all four indication areas: inquiries, requests for bids, bid conversions and value of jobs sold.

INTERNATIONAL VIEW
Chinese Construction Expenditures to Increase Through 2016
Construction expenditures in China will increase 8.8 percent per annum in real terms through 2016, according to the Freedonia Group, a Cleveland-based research firm which has released a new study, “Construction Outlook in China.” Residential building construction is expected to advance at an 8.5-percent annual pace in real terms through 2016, primarily spurred by rising personal income levels, household growth and continuing urbanization.

DWM
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