In brief: Idaho Veneer cutting output

Idaho Veneer will cut its lumber production by half as a result of poor market prices.

The cutbacks will begin next week at the company’s Post Falls operation. The company’s Ceda-Pine plant in Samuels, Idaho, will experience a smaller, 25 percent, drop in lumber output.

No workers will lose their jobs as a result of changes, said Dan Malloy, one of Idaho Veneer’s three owners. Affected employees will be switched to the company’s veneer side.

In addition to lumber, Idaho Veneer makes white pine, cedar and Douglas fir veneer. The veneer, used in furniture manufacturing, doors, and windows, is shipped all over the world. The veneer market has been stable, while demand for lumber is down sharply as a result of fewer homes being built, Malloy said.

Idaho Veneer employs about 100 people in Post Falls and 50 at its Samuels plant.

The firm is one of many North Idaho mills affected by the drop in lumber prices – the result of the U.S.’s softening housing market. About 70 percent of the nation’s lumber is used in home building and remodeling.

Western lumber production dropped 12.2 percent during the first 10 months of the year, compared with the same period in 2006.

OLYMPIA

Unemployment tax cut coming

Unemployment taxes will drop for some Washington state businesses in the new year, saving employers more than $87 million.

Gov. Chris Gregoire says the savings reflect a new law that cuts unemployment tax rates for new businesses and provides lower rates for many employers.

The Employment Security Department says about a third of the 9,500 businesses currently in the highest rate bracket will drop to a better rate. About half of all employers will be in the lowest rate bracket, paying up to $2.29 a week per worker.

The average tax rate will drop from a little over 2 percent this year to 1.7 percent. Not all businesses will see a reduction. About 36 will get decreases, 15 percent will increase and the rest will stay roughly the same.

SEATTLE

Boeing announces order for 737s

Boeing Co. on Friday said AWAS, an airplane leasing company, has ordered 31 of its single-aisle 737-800 jets.

While specific deal terms were not disclosed, aircraft maker Boeing said the order was worth $2.3 billion at list prices, although airlines typically negotiate discounts.

Dublin-based AWAS, which owns and manages 315 airplanes, hopes to buy more of the Next-Generation 737s as it continues to grow, said Franklin Pray, its president and chief executive.

The 737 is Boeing’s best-selling plane. The Chicago-based company, which assembles its commercial jets in the Seattle area, has logged orders for more than 4,300 Next-Generation 737s. It has unfilled orders for more than 1,800 737s, worth more than $130 billion at list prices.