NEWS BM[ ETS

Latest f,nancial reports for the forest products' majors paint an almost universally rosy view . Masonite reporting record sales and earnings, Willamette Industries set record earnings, with Champion International and C-P estahlishing record sales and increased earnings

Posting increases, most of them sizeable, in sales and earnings nere Euans Products, Arcata National, Bohemia Lumber Co,, Potlatch Forests, Inc., Diamond InternationaL and. Weyerltaeuser which cranked in an BS/a ptofit increase on a 35/o sales hike in the 3rd quarter

Housing s/arts in Sept. sufferecl their 1st decline since June, but the drop was only 4/o and that was still a remarkable 15/o ahead ot' the year earlier; the continuing strength has surprised a number of industry seers who have been predicting that a steeper decline would have occured by now condominiums have been surprisingly good sellers, permits {or all types are still coming on strong ,

Troubled Boise-Coscude has named its 42 year old president, .lohn B. Fery, as chiel exec. to replace Robe,rt Y. Hansberger, who resigned "to pursue personal interests;o' B-C revealed that they have agreed in principle with Bendix to sell them their mttlile home and recreationol aehicle businesses for 868 million t:nsh . Bendix, which also owns American Forest Protlucts, says the new acquisitions will be a good "fit" with their other divisions .

Ceorgia-Pacific plans a Dec. stockholders' meetins to vote on their spin-off of about 2O/r, of their assets and libilities to form a new wholly-orvned subsidiary, Louisianu-l'ot'ifit'; yrlans call for L-P to be officially ope,rating by lon. 2 . . the prim.e rate, which is the lowest lending rate banks charge their best customers, Aas risen to 5:h% t'rorn 514%; opinion is presently divided on the likelihood of further hikes

Sierru Pacif,c Industries has purchase d the {ormer Builclers Warehouse Supply, Orem, Utah, ancl has opened another brandnerv retail yarcl in N{ark Spitz's home'own of Carmichael, Cu., with a hoopla-bang grand-opening; both will be named SPI nome rml)l'0\,ement cen,ter Aoron's Home Center, Bakersfield, Ca., also drew biq crowcl-" to lhe rect,nt opening of thei r new improvement center

Hc.rr:el hus purr:lLasetl Hull Industries, Oxnard, Ca., the maker of the simulated wood Polybeam, for an undisclosed price . the Colorado Pine Co., Steamboat Springs, has been sold to IndeJrendent Lumber Co., a branch of Wholesale Builders & Supply, plans call for C.P.C.'s name to be changed to Hi CountryLumber...

Inuestigations lor arson have continuecl follorving a recent S200,000 fire at the Mr. Plyruoor/ store in Denver , erson is rtot suspected in a 2-alarm blaze in Wheat Ridge (Denver) Colo., at CoLumbine Wood Products Co. Lumber Citv has gotten an OK from lhe Citv of Santa Susana, (.a., for a sloie in an existing shopping Center

O'Malley Lumber has opened a new store in Valle Verde, ,4riz., .. Edwards Bldg. Supply has shown ofi their new $i10.000 remodeling job to their enlarged store in Hillsboro, Ore. .. Lin-

I}rook l{arclware had a big blast for their 4th store, in Montclair, Ca. . .. Architectural Bldg. Supply has movecl to a bigger store (a former Food King market) in ldaho Falls, Id. . . Discount Bldrs. Supply plan,s an early opening {or their 4Ih, in Monrouia, Ca. . .. Cearhart Lumber has opened a new store in Cearh,ort,Ore....

C-P"s naw distribution center in Eugene, Ore., will triple the size of that facility . . Cuy Barnett has opened a new wholesale firm, Sean Lumber Co., Anaheim. Ca. Willamette Industries has moued into srrarkling new corp. I{Q in Portland's new 40 story First Nt'I. Bank tower . .

Thomas F. Willcrs. 53. has been elected chairman and chief exec. o{ Cham pion I nt.ernotionrtl. eflective Jan. 1, succeeding Karl R. Bentletscn, who became 65 last mo., Bendetsen remains chairman of the exec. committee of the board . . Bill Daily lta.: moved up lo chairman oi th" board o{ Ed Holderne.ss Sup4lieg, Tucson, Ariz.; replacing Daily as president and gen. mgr. is 7. R. "Bott" Kenyon

Lumbe;r production in Aus. (latcst figs.) was at a seasonally ad.iusted annual rate of 40.1 biiIion b.f., up 6.7/t: over July, 5.4/o ahead of Aug., '71.

Ihe I'ederat T irnbei Purchasers ,4ssn., Denver, has joined the Nt'1. Forest Producrs-Assn.

Careheim Corp., Brisbane, Ca., a San Francisco hardware wholesaler, is currently celebrating its 4.0th anniversary; take o btnu, Yerne Careheim. . in the year ended June 30, OSHA inspectors visited some 33,000 firms, fewer than 7/4th were in full complianceo the remainder rec'rl 213,000 citations for 103,000 violations, with proposed fines totaling more than $2.3 million.