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As nroney rates continue their clownward slide, hopes have become stronget that housing, has bottomed and that sonte nrove upward by honre builcling is nrore possible than it recently seemed. anirlysts rcnririn vcry cautious, however, regarcling any significant uptick this suntmer.

As this issue closed. the prinre lencling rate, for thc banks'best corp. custonrers, was l4(Xr and honre nrortgage rates at sonre s&ls hacl declined tcr l2t/:t\,.. . f urther cleclines across the board in the cost ol' $$ fbr consunrers ancl busincss at( being u'idely.forecast. .

Deprcssing e././e('ts upon the market include: increasecl consunrer lears irs thc recession deepens, nroribund or bankrupt builders and nrore dispersal of the skilled tracles builders will neecl to resunle activities.

Best thing t0 say abor-rt the April housing output is that il wostl't as bad os sont( €xpeded... on a seasonally-adjusted annual basis work was begun on 1,019,000 new privalely-owned dwellings, down a scant 2.1(X, fronr the previous nro.. but a whopping 41.801, below the year earlier: the lowest level since April. '75.

Single ./'amil.v home starts v:ere up 1.6"1'to 625,000. still the 4th worst nro. in the 2l years records have been kept. . . nrullis slippecl 7.5{\' to 394.000. off lT.4t\l' from the sanre period a year earlier. . pernrils for fulure constructiorr slicl 14.2\'l'. about 47'1, below the year earlier fig.

E,conorlist Michael Sunrichrast, National Associatiort of' Honre Builclers, said the slight honre building cleclines in April and the sharp drop-off in mortgage $$ rates ntaclc hinr feel "a little upbcat." Ile adclecl thal "there's light at lhc end ol tlrc tunnel.".

Builcler screanrs ftrr help lionr the fecf . gov. hat'e begun to produce sonre results as LIU[) programs have taken a few baby steps towarcl significant aicl . . . FHA & VA rates also were cut. . nruch pending legislation in the Congress proposes 10 nrake nrore nrortgage $$ available al an affrrrclable cost.

Across the West. 44,0001unrber nrill enrployees are either laid offtlr are on curtailed scheclules. with 108 nrills closecl and 254 curtailecl; procluctittn renrained approx. 33(l' below nornral. . . very bad nunrbers, but slightly improvt'cl .fiont earl,t' lost nto.

In plywoocl,5l rrills were clown nalionwide, 42 on short shifts. with the intlustry ruttning at about 65.8rX, of total installecl cat)acity... like lunrber. these latest figs. reflect what is hoped is a move up ,/iom the bottom o.f the curve.. Western plywood nrills closed totaled 32, with 32 on curtailed schedules.

lleritaq<' Harclu'rtods. /rir'. is ir new wholesale firnr founded by Jack Flavens; plans call for a nrove fronr tentlr. quarters in Santa Ana. Ca., to Chino nriclnronth. Jeff Lofius ancl Ilaskel ('atrscy havc est. Sat'ramento-Paci/it' Corp., an office wholesalc firm in Sacranrento, Ca.. specializing in western red cedar. l)or"rg fir. Ponderosa pine & reclwoocl. .

Irv l)ellinger is the new ntanaging officer of the Montano Building Materiol Dealers Assn., bascd in Helena. he recently solcl the yard he operaled in West Yellowstone for 9 years. . Diamond International is still fighting that attentpted take<rver by a unit of General Ot'cidental S.1., a French holding co. .

Southern Pat'ific (b. ancl Santa Fc Industries. have announced plans to nrerge irrto the nalion's largcst RR.corp.. il ied. agencies clon't obiect. in a separate nrove. SP announced it was cu1ting its lieight rates as much as 60(1, on shipnrents to selected West Coast cities: it is designed to be price cortrpetitive with trucks.

The FTC has abandoned its try {0 strip Formico o./ its trademark for the producl it introcltrccrl nrore lhan u hall-century ago. Potlatch has gotten court ok for i1s 54.5 rrillion purchase of I l5 nriles of the Miluaukee Road in Id.: it will be known as the 51. Maires Rlver RR.

Mertens Lumber ('o. has a new subsicliary. Panel Plank Co., nraking cedar wall plank at their recently acquired Eugene, Or., plarrt... Cierald Main, pres., Bellinghant Luntber Co., has closed all frrur olfices, inclucling Br,/r'o subsidiaries in Wa.. Or., and Ca. . . Louisiana-Pat'i.l'ic plans to sell Norfustar, a real estate ancl resort subsicliary at Lakc Tahoe. Ca...

Oret:on-('alilbrniu Forest Products. Inc.- is a new wholesaler in Eugene. 0r., begun by Dick Coons ancl Ciene Klohs. Ralli Timber 1nc., subsicliary ol' Rcl/i

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