TOP NEWS
Charles Samuel Luck III Dies
On Dec. 1, Charles Samuel Luck III passed away in his home at the age of 87. Luck was long devoted to the Luck Companies, which his father started in 1923, and the people who comprised it. He worked through all areas of the business and was a champion for the aggregates industry.
Knife River Acquisition
Knife River Corp. expanded its Intermountain Region footprint by acquiring the assets of McMurry Ready-Mix Co., an aggregates and concrete supplier based in Casper, Wyo.
CEMEX Manufacturing Day
Teachers and students in Victorville, Calif., and across the country were able to get an inside look into the manufacturing of cement, aggregates and ready-mix concrete, as well as learn directly from CEMEX USA employees about its sustainability efforts.
MSHA WATCH
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) announced a proposed rule incorporating national and international voluntary consensus standards related to electric motor-driven mine equipment and accessories. Under the proposed rule, during a one-year transition period, mine operators could use equipment and accessories that meet either 14 voluntary consensus standards or the existing MSHA approval requirements.
USGS STATS
An estimated 707 million metric tons of total construction aggregates was produced and shipped for consumption in the United States in the third quarter of 2020, a decrease of 5% compared with that of the third quarter of 2019, according to Jason Willett, commodity specialist for the U.S. Geological Survey.
ECONOMIC INDICATORS
- Total construction starts fell 2% in November to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $797.5 billion following a strong gain in October. Residential starts fell 7% during the month, while nonbuilding starts dropped 14%. Nonresidential building construction starts, however, rose 19% in November.
- The National Association of Home Builders forecast is for ongoing gains for single-family construction in 2021, though at a slower growth rate than in 2020. Remodeling will remain strong as people continue to upgrade existing homes.
- The U.S. Census Bureau announced that construction spending during October 2020 – the most current report at press time – was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1,438.5 billion, 1.3% (±1.0%) above the revised September estimate of $1,420.4 billion. The October figure is 3.7% (±1.3%) above the October 2019 estimate of $1,386.8 billion.
ENERGY
- WTI Crude Oil Futures 12/22/2020: $47.02/barrel, down $0.60 from week earlier; down $13.50 from year earlier.
- Natural Gas Futures 12/22/2020: $2.780/MMBtu, up $0.098 from week earlier; up $0.566 from year earlier.
- Retail Diesel 12/21/2020: $2.619/gal., up $0.06 from week earlier; down $0.422 from year earlier.
- Electricity 10/20/2020: Average price to industrial customers 6.72 cents/kilowatt hour; down from 6.82 cents/kilowatt hour a year earlier.
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration