Huber hikes ground calcium carbonate prices by up to 10%

Increases reflect underlying inflationary costs and mirror rises announced by Imerys.



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Trulia: Asking House Prices up 6.4% year-over-year in October

From Trulia chief economist Jed Kolko: What Home Price Slowdown? Some Markets Buck the Trend

Nationally, the month-over-month increase in asking home prices rose to 1.0% in October. Year-over-year, asking prices rose 6.4%, down from the 10.6% year-over-year increase in October 2013. Asking prices rose year-over-year in 91 of the 100 largest U.S. metros.



Nationally, year-over-year price gains have slowed from a year ago. In some markets, this price slowdown has been precipitous. In the most extreme case, Las Vegas prices rose 10.1% in October 2014 versus 31.9% in October 2013, a drop of 21.8 percentage points. Price gains have slowed by almost 20 percentage points in both Northern California (Sacramento, Oakland) and Southern California (Riverside-San Bernardino, San Diego) markets. Among the 10 markets with the largest price slowdowns, only one – Warren-Troy-Farmington Hills, next to Detroit – is outside California or the Southwest.



Nationally, price gains have slowed in 60 of the 100 largest metros, although prices are actually falling year-over-year in only nine metros.



Nationally, rents rose 6.2% year-over-year in October. But in the markets where renters are stretched thinnest, rents are rising even faster. In Miami, Los Angeles, and New York, the median rent on a 2-bedroom unit equals more than half of the average monthly wage, and it’s nearly that much in Oakland and San Francisco. In all five of these least-affordable markets, rents rose 7.8% or more year-over-year.

emphasis added

Note: These asking prices are SA (Seasonally Adjusted) - and adjusted for the mix of homes - and although year-over-year price increases have slowed, the month-to-month increase suggests further house price increases over the next few months on a seasonally adjusted basis.



There is much more in the article.



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KaMin and CADAM raise paper grade kaolin prices

Georgia-produced kaolin energy surcharge to remain unchanged in 2015; steeper increase for Brazilian material



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Thursday: Unemployment Claims

From NDD: A little post-election-day economic balm

If Washington can simply manage to do absolutely nothing to the economy in the next two years, except to agree to pay already incurred debts (a/k/a lift the debt ceiling), then we are in the best position we have been in for nearly a decade for the economy by itself to improve the lot of the working and middle class appreciably.



Here's why:

• there is nothing in the long leading indicators to suggest that we are going to enter an economic downturn at any point in at least the next 9 months. If interest rates continue to drift lower and housing starts improve as a result, you can extend that forecast into 2016.



• continuing economic growth means continuing positive monthly jobs reports



• so long as there is positive jobs growth, and initial jobless claims stay at or near their current levels, the unemployment rate is going to continue to decline -- and that's not just the usual rate, but all the other variations on the unemployment rate as well.



• Because the unemployment rate should remain below 6.5% for the foreseeable future, that means that nominal wage growth, which has been improving for the last 18 months, will continue to improve further - i.e., to 2.5% YoY or 3.0% YoY.



• Also, incremental tightness in the labor market is going to mean that better paying jobs become an increasing share of employment - my hypothesis is that this recovery is no different from previous recoveries, where low wage jobs get added first, and higher wage jobs get added later. Like the expansion after the deep 1982 recession, there was so much slack that it took a long time for those higher paying jobs to show up. There is evidence from the last few jobs reports that it is beginning to happen.



• Unless there is a reversal in gas prices, this is going to mean significant real wage growth to the average working family.

In short, simply leaving the economy alone for the next 2 years is likely to mean a continued improvement in the jobs picture, and a significant improvement on the wage front. Or, if ever there was a time when laissez faire might be a perfectly decent policy, this point in the cycle is it.

Since Senator McConnell has already ruled out defaulting (Congress will raise the "debt ceiling") and another government shutdown, then doing next to nothing will probably be OK.



Thursday:

• Early: Trulia Price Rent Monitors for October. This is the index from Trulia that uses asking house prices adjusted both for the mix of homes listed for sale and for seasonal factors.



• At 8:30 AM ET, the initial weekly unemployment claims report will be released. The consensus is for claims to decrease to 283 thousand from 287 thousand.



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Peugeot Takes Low-Cost Step With Moroccan Outsourcing

By REUTERS from NYT Business Day http://ift.tt/1E5uXUC

This content was assembled for you by the YQ Matrix platform



The views expressed in this post and throughout the series are the autor's own and not intended to reflect the views the YQ Matrix platform, its users or any associated organisations.



For the procurement people among you, have a look at the latest YQ Matrix raw material and semi-finished prices. For: Prices on other websites.

Exclusive: Peugeot Takes Low-Cost Step With Moroccan Outsourcing

By REUTERS from NYT Business Day http://ift.tt/13HJ0oy

This content was assembled for you by the YQ Matrix platform



The views expressed in this post and throughout the series are the autor's own and not intended to reflect the views the YQ Matrix platform, its users or any associated organisations.



For the procurement people among you, have a look at the latest YQ Matrix raw material and semi-finished prices. For: Prices on other websites.

Second-Hand Clothes the Austerity Fashion in Eastern Europe

By REUTERS from NYT Business Day http://ift.tt/1pl9juu

This content was assembled for you by the YQ Matrix platform



The views expressed in this post and throughout the series are the autor's own and not intended to reflect the views the YQ Matrix platform, its users or any associated organisations.



For the procurement people among you, have a look at the latest YQ Matrix raw material and semi-finished prices. For: Prices on other websites.