NEWS BR!TFS

/\iloney rates continued to plummet lower in respon€e tct Presiden.t Nixon's mlaes to hypo the economy coupled with a seri' ous lack ot' borrouer action that had the banks falling all over themselves t0 cut the price they charge for lentling money

The big banks in New York cut their prime lending rate twice in trvo business days, the tlt'ird cut in a month other banks reluctantly fell in line with the 6/a rate .., home m.ort!:ege rates next came under fire, with the banking biggies in N.Y. lon'ering the lending rate to 71/a/o fron 7I/27o, the first time in recent. 1'enrs that major banks o{Teretl rates below that state's 71/z% ceiling

The Federal Resert,e Boord, in a widely anticipated, though separate action, cut to 5/o t'ronz 5r/+% the discount rate at 6 of the 12 district Reserve Banks the lowering of FHA-Y.4 interest rates Io 71/Z% by the government from the ptiar B/o rate was immediately hailed by many as an importont im,petu,s to lift housing produclion

Some bankers now predicl ytrime ra.tes uill be changetd more olten and by smaller amounts; the banking industry hopes this will help diminish holh the glarr ol publicity and the r:riticism tbe industry has suffered {or charging high interest lates

H ousing stcrts in December (latest figures available) hit the higlrcst rate in 20 years, I,987,000 at an ann,ually adjusted seasonal rate an optimistic George Romney, HIJD secretary, has predit'terl 2 milLion slarl.s catt be achicvecl in 271: he also rerealeii that he has "frozetr" all rxisting Sec. 235 funds becau-"t: of alleged abuses, an investigation is txpected

I)amoge in cxcess of $100,000 was sufTered by l]oise Ca*"cade's ]Iedford, Ore., yard rluring a se\ere n'intl antl rain storrn more than $500.00A domage was caused by a gelneral alarm fire at Ellingson Lumber & Timber, Baker, Ore. during December , .

Pope & TaLbot is inve-"ting $-1 million in expanding their Oakridge, Oregon, forest proclucts complex 12 netu plynootl plttnts are schedulecl to come on line in '71, accortling to ,\P.\ e\ec. \'l). Bronson [,ewis, who also forecasts clemand at l5.B billion sq. ft. . the average 1970 plywood Jrrice rvas below the avt-'rage for both '5ti and '59, AP'\ notes

{ ..S. Plt u'o,td -Chnm1,i,tn Pepcrs net and sales droppetl shorply in '70, clown from $2.07 a share to 97 !:, sales t'eLl from $1.19 billion to $1.i15 billion.,. Euuns Products. while declaring the usual 15d cash clir,iclend. har.e put ofi until April consideratiern of their annual 4ft, stock dividend.

Willarnette Vattey Mfg. Co. has agreed to sell lOO% of its stock t<r Bohemia Lumber for an undisclosed nrice S{allco in Phoenir and Freclericks-FIansen" l,os \ngeles, are F'lecto's neu'es! distrilrutors . the Small flu-"iness Admin,istration and the Bank of .\merica havt' a joint program to lrrovide SB,1-gu,aronteed reuoluing lines of credit to small builtling contractors

F irst figures on honre remodelittg in '70 show' an int'rease to ,$ 15 billion from the $13.5 billion spent the previous year lllll) Secretttrry Ceorge. Rom' nr,_r.. rrho trvit:t' has lruhlicly rernarkt'rl about a "timber shortagc," has tolrl the Nt'1. F'orest I)roclucts A-.sn. his choice of n,crrrls rvas "inaduertcrtt." und tlutt, hc rcgrets maA'ing the slrttements; his choicc rif words hncl earlier blought loutl screarns frorn itrrlustrt' relrresentatives who prole.tetl tlr,'il ittacr-uritcies

Prr:siltrtt Richard ,\i:ton has askecl labor and rnan,agement tt-l tlevise a plan u,itltin liO clays that rvill "st:riottsly ntodit't' the u,ageprirc sltirrtl" in lhe consllrrction industr-y; many observers feel optimislic that sornething rvas clone to help cope rvith the inflation 1,r,,lrlern. ltttl ttonrler ttt its acIunl alJr:ct

'l'he only thing arouncl to prevent a "phenomenal )'e(tr" in housing, according to Business trl" ce.k Xlagazine, is thc rapicl increase in home ltrices, the irzcreaserl S4ranting o/ .srr&sidies by the {eds should offset the price factor, they feel u. 2 year f,ght over methods for splicing veneer sections has heen settled rvith a licensing agreement between Simpson Timber ancl two Oregon firms, Leacling Pll wood Corp., Corvallis, and ll. \'. Prentice Co., Portlancl

Re sidt:n tiaL constr uction promises ro Lre the .trongest performer in the priuatr: sector of the economy this yearo forecasts E. C. Spelman, president o{ the N{ortgage Rarrkers \ssn. . . tth,,lesaler-distribu,tors surveyed bv their national assn. predi'cted a 10/r rise in snles, c 6/o increase in profits, for both durables antl nonclurables .

Sun Lumber Co., San Pedro, Calif., has purchased the inventory, equipment and lease to 12 acres r:f land of Bornett-Associates-Lumber, Los Alamitos, no major personnel changes are pianned: no selling price was disclosed . . . WWPA has held a number of meetings with builders erplaining the new lumber standards.