Canadian municipalities issued building permits worth $6.9 billion in May, up 13.8 per cent from April, said Statistics Canada Monday. This followed a 2.2 per cent rise in the previous month. The increase in May resulted primarily from higher construction intentions for commercial buildings in Ontario and Manitoba, as well as multi-family dwellings in British Columbia. The total value of permits has been on a slight upward trend since the beginning of 2014.
Gains were posted in every province in May, except Quebec and Nova Scotia. Ontario, British Columbia and Manitoba registered the largest increases.
Construction intentions for residential dwellings rose 9.5 per cent to $4.1 billion in May, the third consecutive monthly increase. Higher residential construction intentions were registered in eight provinces, led by British Columbia, followed by Ontario and the other western provinces.
In the non-residential sector, the value of permits rose 20.8 per cent to $2.8 billion. Gains were posted in seven provinces, led by Ontario and Manitoba. Quebec, Saskatchewan and Nova Scotia posted declines following large increases in all three provinces in April.