Midwest Business Activity Expanded in December

Midwest Business Activity Expanded in December: "An industry association reported that the expansion exceeded forecasts, hitting an almost four-year high.




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Landmark Health Care Bill Splits Industry

Landmark Health Care Bill Splits Industry: "The construction industry is divided over the landmark health care bill approved by the Senate on Dec. 24, primarily because of a provision that would require small construction industry employers to provide health insurance to employees."
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Moody's CRE Price Index Continues to Decline

Moody's CRE Price Index Continues to Decline: "The Moody’s/REAL Commercial Property Price Index measured a 1.5 percent decline in prices in October. Prices are now 43.7 percent off 2007 peaks."
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Retail Real Estate's 2009 in Review

Retail Real Estate's 2009 in Review: "A look back at the most challenging year in retail real estate's history."
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Nonresidential building recession will persist through most of 2010 | Construction Industry News | Reed Construction Data

Nonresidential building recession will persist through most of 2010 | Construction Industry News | Reed Construction Data
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Construction Prices Jump in November

Construction Prices Jump in November: "Federal data showing sharp increases in the prices of key construction materials, such as diesel, copper, and brass mill shapes, likely foreshadow future increases in construction costs

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Senate Provision Riles the Construction Industry

Senate Provision Riles the Construction Industry: "

A last-minute addition to the Senate health-care bill that requires small construction companies to offer health coverage or pay a fine touched off a battle Tuesday with some industry groups demanding its removal.

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Report Reveals Future of the Worldwide Construction Industry

Report Reveals Future of the Worldwide Construction Industry: "The FMI/CMAA Tenth Annual Survey of Owners portrays a construction owner community responding to changing economic conditions by looking to service providers for more comprehensive support across the entire building lifecycle

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CONSTRUCTION UNEMPLOYMENT NEARS 20 PERCENT AS ANOTHER 27,000 CONSTRUCTION WORKERS LOSE THEIR JOB IN NOVEMBER: ""
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ENR Global Sourcebook 2009 : Recession Puts Top International Firms into Survival Mode

ENR Global Sourcebook 2009 : Recession Puts Top International Firms into Survival Mode: "The construction industry has entered a recession that has affected virtually every region and market. The downturn has had its most immediate impact on the design professionals on the front end of projects. For the world’s largest engineers and architects, this means now is a good time to reexamine their services and strategies."
CONSTRUCTION UNEMPLOYMENT NEARS 20 PERCENT AS ANOTHER 27,000 CONSTRUCTION WORKERS LOSE THEIR JOB IN NOVEMBER: ""
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LATE-NIGHT AMENDMENT TO HEALTH CARE LEGISLATION ADDS NEW COSTS, REGULATORY BURDENS TO HARDEST-HIT CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY

LATE-NIGHT AMENDMENT TO HEALTH CARE LEGISLATION ADDS NEW COSTS, REGULATORY BURDENS TO HARDEST-HIT CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY: ""
CONSTRUCTION UNEMPLOYMENT NEARS 20 PERCENT AS ANOTHER 27,000 CONSTRUCTION WORKERS LOSE THEIR JOB IN NOVEMBER: ""
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FALSE CLAIMS OF BROAD SUPPORT PROMPTED SENATE ACTION TO EXCLUDE SMALL CONSTRUCTION FIRMS FROM HEALTH CARE EXEMPTIONS

FALSE CLAIMS OF BROAD SUPPORT PROMPTED SENATE ACTION TO EXCLUDE SMALL CONSTRUCTION FIRMS FROM HEALTH CARE EXEMPTIONS: ""
CONSTRUCTION UNEMPLOYMENT NEARS 20 PERCENT AS ANOTHER 27,000 CONSTRUCTION WORKERS LOSE THEIR JOB IN NOVEMBER: ""
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Senate Health Care Bill Threatens Home Building Industry

Senate Health Care Bill Threatens Home Building Industry: "Press Release"
CONSTRUCTION UNEMPLOYMENT NEARS 20 PERCENT AS ANOTHER 27,000 CONSTRUCTION WORKERS LOSE THEIR JOB IN NOVEMBER: ""
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Homebuilding in U.S. Looks Stable for First Time Since 2006, Moody's Says

Homebuilding in U.S. Looks Stable for First Time Since 2006, Moody's Says: "

The outlook for U.S. homebuilders improved to a oestablea for the first time in almost four years, Moodya s Investors Service said today, citing rising sales and the most affordable property market in years.

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CONSTRUCTION UNEMPLOYMENT NEARS 20 PERCENT AS ANOTHER 27,000 CONSTRUCTION WORKERS LOSE THEIR JOB IN NOVEMBER: ""
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26 STATES ADD CONSTRUCTION JOBS DURING UNUSUALLY MILD NOVEMBER, BUT ONLY NORTH DAKOTA SEES ANNUAL INCREASE

Too Early to Know if Trend is Emerging As Kansas and Nebraska See Largest Increase; Vermont and Washington See Largest Decrease in Monthly Construction Employment
26 STATES ADD CONSTRUCTION JOBS DURING UNUSUALLY MILD NOVEMBER, BUT ONLY NORTH DAKOTA SEES ANNUAL INCREASE: ""
CONSTRUCTION UNEMPLOYMENT NEARS 20 PERCENT AS ANOTHER 27,000 CONSTRUCTION WORKERS LOSE THEIR JOB IN NOVEMBER: ""
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Housing Starts Regain Some Ground in November

Housing Starts Regain Some Ground in November: "Press Release"
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November Construction Falls 9%

November Construction Falls 9%: "At a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $405.0 billion, new construction starts in November dropped 9% from the previous month, according to McGraw-Hill Construction, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies."
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Stimulus: HHS Awards $509 Million For Health Clinics

Stimulus: HHS Awards $509 Million For Health Clinics: "Providing more potential work for construction’s buildings sector, the Dept. of Health and Human Services on Dec. 9 announced $508.5 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act aid to build or renovate 85 community health centers."
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4Q Cost Report: Recession Spreads To Nonresidential Buildings

4Q Cost Report: Recession Spreads To Nonresidential Buildings: "The deepening recession in nonresidential building will keep a cap on costs, frustrating producers who are trying to take advantage of any signs of life in homebuilding. There will be some ups and downs, but in the end, there is too much idle capacity and too little demand to allow prices to stray beyond this year’s bottom."
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Home Building Permits, weather uninfluenced, rose 6 percent in November

U.S. Reports Upturn in Home Building: "The figures offer some hope that construction will continue a slow and steady revival that will spread through the broader economy.




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NEW DATA SHOWS LOW CONSTRUCTION PRICES MAY SOON BE COMING TO AN END AS DIESEL, PLYWOORD AND COPPER PRICES JUMP IN NOVEMBER

NEW DATA SHOWS LOW CONSTRUCTION PRICES MAY SOON BE COMING TO AN END AS DIESEL, PLYWOORD AND COPPER PRICES JUMP IN NOVEMBER: ""
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HHS Awards $509 Million in ARRA Grants for Health Clinics

HHS Awards $509 Million in ARRA Grants for Health Clinics: "The Dept. of Health and Human Services has awarded $508.5 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds to build or renovate 85 community health clinics around the country."
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Pacific Retail Capital Partners Buys West Oaks Mall

Pacific Retail Capital Partners Buys West Oaks Mall: "Pacific Retail Capital Partners acquired the West Oaks Mall in Houston for $15 million from special servicer LNR Partners Inc."
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A&B Properties sells California retail center

A&B Properties sells California retail center: "A&B Properties has sold a California retail center. (ALEX)

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Federal Reserve reveals expectations for commercial markets are low

Commercial Construction Remains on the Decline: "Despite reports from the 12 Federal Reserve districts indicating that economic conditions are improving modestly since the last report more than a month ago, market conditions for commercial real estate and construction were reported to have weakened

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HHS Awards $509 Million in ARRA Grants for Health Clinics, California a Big Winner

HHS Awards $509 Million in ARRA Grants for Health Clinics: "The Dept. of Health and Human Services has awarded $508.5 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds to build or renovate 85 community health clinics around the country."
linked to you by Tim McCarthy P.E., Engineered Framing Systems, Inc.,(805) 807-7600

Robert Toll Says U.S. Housing Market Is `Coming Back': Video

Robert Toll Says U.S. Housing Market Is `Coming Back': Video: "

Dec. 11 -- Robert Toll, chief executive officer of Toll Brothers Inc., talks with Bloomberg's Carol Massar about the outlook for the U.S. housing market.

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Shanghai Salary Raises Slow

Shanghai Salary Raises Slow: "

Associated Press

Workers in Shanghai may see raises drop

Employees in China’s richest city, Shanghai, saw salaries stagnate this year – at least compared with what they have grown used to.

They can’t expect much of a pick-up in 2010 either. Perhaps worse for many Shanghai workers used to ever-upward mobility is that its people will do merely as well as the rest of China.

Human-resources firm Hewitt Associates LLC on Thursday predicted average annual salary increases will be 7% in 2010, about equal to what is expected nationwide.

That won’t necessarily make things comfortable for employers. Hewitt’s Shanghai Compensation and Benefits Study concludes that for employers, it will be back to the challenge of hiring enough good workers: “In order to hire more talent, enterprises have put salary increases on the agenda.”

The study, which included 911 enterprise participants, shows the average annual salary increase in 2009 in Shanghai was 5.2% in the non-manufacturing sector and 5.4% in the manufacturing sector, about half the 11.2% and 10.1% increases seen in those sectors in 2008. The average lagged the national level of a 5.8% increase in salaries in 2009.

“As an international financial metropolis, Shanghai is inevitably influenced by financial crisis,” the firm said.

Rather than layoffs, it found salary freezes in Shanghai this year. The voluntary rate of turnover – job-hopping – slid 3.4 percentage points in 2009 to 13.9%, the firm found.

The employees still commanding good increases this year: pharmaceutical and medical-device firms, up 8.9% and 9.1% respectively.

The market for new job seekers was tougher than ever. The average starting salary for a fresh university graduate was 45,153 yuan ($6,615) this year, while post-graduates could earn 63,732 yuan.

Separately, Standard Chartered Bank economist Stephen Green, in a report Thursday, takes issue with the conclusions reached in China’s effort to track urban private sector wages. He said the National Bureau of Statistics study probably captures only about 42% of the nation’s 450 million workers. Since the ones missed are likely lower-paid migrant workers, the official statistics probably overstate actual wages, said his report.

Mr. Green puts the urban wage at 1,476 yuan a month, compared with the government’s estimate of 2,077 yuan.

–Bai Lin

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U.S. Businesses Suspend Some Euphoria

U.S. Businesses Suspend Some Euphoria: "

China’s 4 trillion yuan ($586 billion) economic stimulus package is credited with cushioning the global economy, supporting demand for raw materials and creating more consumers from its big population.

Yet, among U.S. companies operating in China, just 10% say the package had a significant positive impact on their operations.

That may be among the reasons that a new survey finds that a chunk of U.S. companies expect to record a drop in revenue and losses for 2009 from their China operations, while most are signaling less enthusiasm for investment than they did a year ago and haven’t even considered making an acquisition in the country.

The American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai put a positive spin on the findings of its survey: “The primary message of the 2009 China Business Report is one of great optimism. Many American companies in China are reporting profits despite the global downturn and believe business is on track to grow in China amidst a business environment that continues to improve and support expansion.”

True, more than 90% of the 369 U.S. corporate members that answered the survey said they maintain a positive five-year view on China. While that is a more positive outlook than members gave in the past two years, it sagged below figures in Amcham surveys during the early and middle part of the decade.

U.S. companies weren’t shielded from the global recession by being in China, though 42.1% said they did better in China than in operations elsewhere in the world. More than half the respondents said there was at least some negative impact to their business in China from the global economic crisis and only 10.5% said no impact was felt. The biggest sting was in the form of lower sales and revenue.

The survey found that 64.5% of its U.S. member companies expect to generate profits for 2009 from China operations, down from the more than 70% that said so in five of the previous six years. The percentages of companies that said they would lose money or break even – 35.5% – was higher than it has been any other year in that period.

Less than half of the companies surveyed said they anticipated a rise in 2009 revenue and some 39.1% said revenue would fall in 2009, the most pessimistic readings since Amcham’s 1999 survey. Conditions may improve: About 60% said 2010 revenues would rise, while 17.9% forecast a fall.

China profit margins likely improved in 2009, said 44.8% of respondents, while 33.1% said they weakened. Compared with other markets, 40.8% said China margins were stronger, while only 8.7% said they were narrower – a vast improvement from 33% in Amcham’s survey a decade ago.

China was seen by 74.4% of companies as a top-three priority globally. But the appetite for investment was cautious, with 41.4% of companies saying outlays didn’t rise in 2009 and 58.8% noting they didn’t consider any acquisitions. Some 60.9% said they would increase investment levels in 2010 but that compared with 72.55% saying so in last year’s report. Companies planning to boost investment by more than 50% in the coming year dropped to 3.6% from a 6.97% reading a year ago, according to the survey.

The effect of Beijing’s stimulus was mixed: 10% said it had a significant positive impact and 46% reported a slight benefit, but some 41.5% said it wasn’t felt.

More companies than ever before in the survey — 58.6% — said their goal in China is to produce or source goods and services in China for Chinese consumption. In a related finding, just 16.3% said the primary goal was to service the U.S., down from more than 20% in each of the previous three years.

Human resources remained the biggest concern of businesses surveyed, though many agreed pressure for higher salary and wages were kept at bay – temporarily. But in discussing the report, Pierre Cohade, Amcham board member and regional president of Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., said as China’s economy grows, wage freezes and other sacrifices made in 2009 may result in China employees saying “we want it back in 2010.”

–James T. Areddy

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Georgia-Pacific Closing Fordyce Mill

Georgia-Pacific Closing Fordyce Mill: "

Georgia-Pacific Corp. says it will permanently close its Fordyce plywood mill, putting about 340 people out of work.

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Retail Real Estate Should Begin Its Healing Process in 2010

Retail Real Estate Should Begin Its Healing Process in 2010: "After suffering through a moribund 2009 when investment sales, lending and leasing were largely frozen, the retail real estate industry is showing signs that the long-awaited rebound may be starting."
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Cubellis, One of Boston’s Largest Firms, Shuttered

Cubellis, One of Boston’s Largest Firms, Shuttered
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CONSTRUCTION UNEMPLOYMENT NEARS 20 PERCENT AS ANOTHER 27,000 CONSTRUCTION WORKERS LOSE THEIR JOB IN NOVEMBER

CONSTRUCTION UNEMPLOYMENT NEARS 20 PERCENT AS ANOTHER 27,000 CONSTRUCTION WORKERS LOSE THEIR JOB IN NOVEMBER: ""
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New Wood Framed Construction Code Adopted in ShanghaiShanghai begins wood framed construction

Shanghai, considred the innovator in China, will begin building multi-family residential dwellings in accordance with the new code adopted this year.
See complete article here.
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Lumber could be the new oil

Lumber could be the new oil: "

Shares of several of Canadaa s largest lumber exporters have skyrocketed in the past two months as new building codes in China allowing wood in construction have cracked open a previously inaccessible market for Canadaa s long-suffering forestry industry.

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Non-Residential Market Starts show Double Digit October Gains, Hinting at Slowdown in the Recession

Strong October Hints at Slowdown in the Recession: "The value of new construction starts increased 12% in October with double-digit gains in nonresidential buildings and public works, according to McGraw-Hill Construction."
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FDIC’s Recommendations for Commercial Real Estate Loans Begin to Ease Borrowers’ Woes

FDIC’s Recommendations for Commercial Real Estate Loans Begin to Ease Borrowers’ Woes: "The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation’s (FDIC) policy recommendations for banks dealing with troubled commercial real estate loans appear to be easing the burden on borrowers facing falling property values."
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A November With Rosier Retail Data

A November With Rosier Retail Data: "Despite reports of weaker spending on the Friday after Thanksgiving, the nation’s stores appear to have fared much better this November than last year.




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Private non-residential constrution down 21%

NONRESIDENTIAL CONSTRUCTION SPENDING DROPS TO LOWEST RATE IN 27 MONTHS AS COMMERICAL ACTIVITY AND ROAD BUILDING DECLINE: ""
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