Some labor markets remain tight, and wages in those industries are rising, particularly for highly technical positions, business services and the retail industry. Temporary service firms are still having trouble finding enough workers to fill customer requests. Some high tech contacts say the industry has turned its focus to retaining workers rather than hiring. Manufacturing Manufacturing activity continued to weaken. Import competition remains intense for some industries, with plant or line shutdowns expected in lumber and paper.
Lumber remains in oversupply despite strong demand from the construction industry.
Domestic demand for paper products is also strong, but global demand remains weak, and inventories are up. Globally, plant shut downs are expected to reduce worldwide excess paper capacity by 50 percent or more. Cement producers say the softening reported in the last beige book appears to be solely due to poor weather, and activity has returned to high levels. Brick demand was strong, and gypsum wallboard sales have been so strong that customers are on allocation for this product. Metals producers are receiving new orders from the construction industry but expect these to slow.