Canadian municipalities issued $7.5 billion worth of building permits in February, down 2.5 per cent from January, said Statistics Canada Thursday. Ontario and Alberta led the five provinces that reported declines in February. The national decrease was mainly the result of lower construction intentions for single-family dwellings and institutional structures.
The value of residential building permits issued by Canadian municipalities fell 1.5 per cent from January to $5 billion in February, but remained just above the $5 billion mark for a second consecutive month. The decline in single-family construction intentions was moderated by an increase in the multi-family component.
Canada Building Permits
RESIDENTIAL SECTOR
Construction intentions for single-family dwellings in Canada declined 5.4 per cent to $2.6 billion in February, according to Statistics Canada Thursday. Ontario registered the greatest decrease in this component, more than offsetting the six provinces that reported gains.
Conversely, multi-family construction intentions increased 3 per cent to $2.4 billion in February, a second consecutive monthly gain. The increase was mainly attributable to apartment buildings in both British Columbia and Alberta. In February, Canadian municipalities approved the construction of 19,903 new dwellings (+2.9%), consisting of 13,445 multi-family units (+9.3%) and 6,458 single units (-8.3%).
NON-RESIDENTIAL CONSTRUCTION
Municipalities issued $2.4 billion worth of building permits for non-residential structures in February, down 4.5 per cent from January. Five provinces registered decreases, led by Alberta and followed by Ontario and British Columbia. Nationally, the institutional component contributed the most to the decline.
The institutional component decreased 16.2 per cent to $609 million in February, mainly due to lower construction intentions for government buildings and elementary schools.
In February, the value of building permits issued for industrial structures fell 2.7 per cent to $395 million, fol- lowing a 9.9 per cent increase in the previous month. Higher construction intentions for utility buildings in Saskatchewan and Ontario could not offset the widespread decreases reported across several types of industrial buildings in multiple provinces.
The commercial component rose 1 per cent to $1.4 billion in February, marking a second consecutive monthly increase.