July 8, 2008

Forecast: Existing Home Sales May Recover in Second Half

Building Materials/Construction, Economic Trends, Free, News, Research & Analytics, Subscriber Only, Top Distributor Sectors / MDM Staff

The National Association of Realtors is forecasting a recovery in existing-home sales in the second half of the year, with modest near-term movement.”

The group’s Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in May, fell 4.7% to 84.7 from 88.9 in April. It remains 14% below May 2007.

“The overall decline in contract signings suggests we are not out of the woods by any means,” said Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist.

The PHSI in the West slipped 1.3% to 97.5 in May but is 2% higher than May 2007. In the Northeast, the index declined 2.9% to 77.0 in May and is 16.4% below a year ago. The index in the Midwest fell 6% to 78.6 and is 13.8% below May 2007. In the South, the index dropped 7.1% in May to 84.5 and is 22.1% …

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May Wholesale Revenues Grow 1.6%

Economic Trends, Free, News, Research & Analytics, Subscriber Only / MDM Staff

May 2008 sales of merchant wholesalers, except manufacturers’sales branches and offices, were $397.4 billion, up 1.6% from April and up 13.7% from May 2007, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The April preliminary estimate was revised upward 0.2%. May sales of durable goods were down 0.2% from last month, but were up 7.6% from a year ago.

Compared to last month, furniture and home furnishings were down 4.0%, while sales of metals and minerals, except petroleum were up 2.9%. Sales of nondurable goods were up 3.2% (+/-0.8%) from last month and were up 19.2% from last year. Sales of petroleum and petroleum products were up 7.5% from last month and sales of apparel, piece goods, and notions were up 5.2%.

Inventories
Total inventories of merchant …

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Valley National Gases Acquires Beaver Valley Welding Supply

Finance, Free, Gases & Welding Equipment, Mergers & Acquisitions, News, Subscriber Only, Top Distributor Sectors / MDM Staff

Valley National Gases, LLC, Independence, OH, has acquired Beaver Valley Welding Supply, Inc., Aliquippa, PA. The acquired business sells industrial, medical, and specialty gases, and welding equipment and supplies. Jeff Lyden, former owner, will remain with the business.

The acquisition will enhance Valley National Gases’ reach in the Western Pennsylvania Region.

The purchase is Valley National’s sixth acquisition since being acquired by CI Capital Partners in February 2007. The acquisitions have expanded the distributor’s territory to include Indiana, Maine and New Hampshire, and have strengthened existing operations in Pennsylvania and Ohio.

Valley National Gases packages and distributes industrial, medical and specialty gases, welding equipment …

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Drug Distributor Cardinal Health Restructures

Economic Trends, Free, News, Pharmaceutical & Health Care, Research & Analytics, Subscriber Only, Top Distributor Sectors / MDM Staff

Medical product and drug distributor Cardinal Health, Dublin, OH, is restructuring to cut costs and realign resources.

With the changes the company reduces its workforce by 600 positions. Of those positions, 160 are open and will not be filled.

Cardinal’s network of pharmaceutical and medical product distribution centers and nuclear pharmacies will form the Healthcare Supply Chain Services segment, which will have revenues of more than $80 billion.

Products for infusion, medication dispensing, respiratory care and infection prevention will be grouped in the Clinical and Medical Products segment with annual revenue of $5 billion.

Through this restructuring, we sharpen our focus on two distinct, large and growing segments of the health …

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Two Forest Products Companies Merge

Building Materials/Construction, Finance, Free, Mergers & Acquisitions, News, Subscriber Only, Top Distributor Sectors / MDM Staff

Building trends have led two forest products companies in Idaho to merge. Bennett Forest Products and Riley Creek Lumber, as outlined in this Associated Press piece, say they are doing so to strengthen ties to larger customers, including Home Depot and Lowe’s, to offset a recent fall in business from small contractors.

The strategy is designed to meet demands from the retailers that “suppliers be large enough to guarantee delivery of lumber products.” Riley Creek supplied the retailers previously; Bennett did not.

According to the AP article, the merger may help the one-time competitors dig in for a continued drop in demand for lumber due to the …

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Riverside Co. Acquires SPX Air Filtration

Finance, Free, Mergers & Acquisitions, News, Subscriber Only, Top Distributor Sectors / MDM Staff

The Riverside Company has acquired SPX Air Filtration Ltd., a subsidiary of diversified industrial manufacturer SPX Corp., Charlotte, NC.

SPX Air Filtration manufactures and distributes air filtration products worldwide. The transaction will create a standalone company.

SPX reported the air filtration unit as a discontinued operation as of the third quarter 2007. SPX employs 17,000 people in more than 35 …

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Survey: Decline of U.S. Dollar Benefiting Some U.S. Manufacturers

Economic Trends, Free, Research & Analytics, Subscriber Only / Jenel Stelton-Holtmeier

There may be some benefits to the weak U.S. dollar for U.S. manufacturers.

A Buyer MFGWatch survey conducted by MFG.com in May surveyed buyers to find out the impact of the dollar’s weakness in the global market on their decisions of where to source manufacturing. Of the more than 500 respondents, 47% said they were sourcing more business in the U.S. as a direct result of the decline in the greenback’s value.

That’s good news for U.S. manufacturers who have seen a modest rise in business from these decisions, according to the survey.

The impact may be best seen in the responses from international companies. Requests for quotes from international buyers for the five-month period of January through May nearly doubled compared to the same period in …

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July 8, 2008

Forecast: Existing Home Sales May Recover in Second Half

May Wholesale Revenues Grow 1.6%

Valley National Gases Acquires Beaver Valley Welding Supply

Drug Distributor Cardinal Health Restructures

Two Forest Products Companies Merge

Riverside Co. Acquires SPX Air Filtration

Survey: Decline of U.S. Dollar Benefiting Some U.S. Manufacturers

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