|
Significant gains in Ontario, British Columbia and Manitoba |
Canadian municipalities issued building permits worth $9.2 billion
dollars in July, up 11.8% from June and the fourth consecutive monthly
advance. The increase in July was mainly attributable to higher construction
intentions for multi-family dwellings in Ontario and British Columbia as well
as institutional buildings in Manitoba.
Chart 1
Total value of permits
Total value of permits
Note(s):
The higher variability associated with the trend-cycle estimates is
indicated with a dotted line on the chart for the current reference
month and the three previous months. See note to readers.
The value of residential building permits increased for the fifth consecutive
month, up 18.0% to $5.0 billion in July. Gains were posted in seven
provinces, led by Ontario and British Columbia, with Alberta a distant third.
The largest decline occurred in Nova Scotia.
In the non-residential sector, the value of permits rose 5.2% to a record
high $4.2 billion. This represented a fourth consecutive monthly
increase. Gains were recorded in six provinces, with Manitoba accounting for
most of the increase. In contrast, the largest decline occurred in Alberta,
followed by Quebec. Both provinces posted large gains the previous month.
Residential sector: Significant increase in construction intentions for multi-family dwellings
The value of building permits for multi-family dwellings rose 43.4% to
$2.5 billion in July, after a 4.5% decrease the previous month. This
gain was primarily the result of higher construction intentions for apartment
and apartment-condominium projects in Ontario, British Columbia and, to a
lesser extent, Alberta.
Canadian municipalities issued permits for single-family dwellings worth
$2.4 billion in July, a slight decrease of 0.5%, after three
consecutive monthly increases. The value of single-family dwelling permits
declined in five provinces, with the largest decrease occurring in Ontario.
Alberta saw the largest increase, followed by Saskatchewan and Nova Scotia.
At the national level, municipalities approved permits for the construction
of 20,511 new dwellings, up 21.4% from June. This increase was
attributable to multi-family dwellings, which rose 35.2%
to 14,050 units. In contrast, the number of single-family dwellings
edged down 0.6% to 6,461 units.
Chart 2
Residential and non-residential sectors
Residential and non-residential sectors
Note(s):
The higher variability associated with the trend-cycle estimates is
indicated with a dotted line on the chart for the current reference
month and the three previous months. See note to readers.
Non-residential sector: Large increase in construction intentions for institutional buildings
The value of permits for institutional buildings rose 28.4% to
$1.8 billion in July, following a large increase the previous month. This
gain was primarily the result of higher construction intentions for medical
facilities in Quebec and Manitoba, as well as educational institutions in
Alberta.
In the commercial component, the value of building permits rose 2.6% to
$1.8 billion in July, following a 2.3% decrease in June. Gains were
reported in five provinces, led by Ontario and Quebec. Higher construction
intentions for warehouses and, to a lesser degree, retail and wholesale
outlets were mainly responsible for the increase at the national level.
Construction intentions for industrial buildings fell 32.6% to
$511 million in July, ending a string of three consecutive monthly gains.
Lower construction intentions for communication buildings in Quebec and
utility buildings in Ontario and Alberta accounted for most of the decline.
Provinces: Significant gains in Ontario, British Columbia and Manitoba
The value of permits increased in five provinces, with the largest gain in
Ontario, followed by British Columbia and Manitoba.
Most of the gain in Ontario and British Columbia was attributable to
multi-family dwellings, while the increase in Manitoba came from the
institutional component and, to a lesser extent, the commercial component.
Quebec posted the largest decline, followed by Newfoundland and Labrador and
Nova Scotia. The decrease in Quebec was mainly because of a 65.3% decline
in construction intentions for industrial buildings. Newfoundland and
Labrador's decrease was attributable to lower construction intentions for
commercial buildings, while in Nova Scotia, lower construction intentions for
multi-family dwellings were responsible for the decrease.
Higher construction intentions in most census metropolitan areas
In July, the value of building permits was up in 21 of
the 34 census metropolitan areas, led by Toronto, Vancouver and
Hamilton.
The gain in Toronto was driven by higher construction intentions for
multi-family dwellings and, to a lesser extent, institutional buildings. The
increase in Vancouver came mainly from multi-family dwellings, while in
Hamilton, institutional buildings and multi-family dwellings were responsible
for the increase.
The largest declines occurred in Calgary, followed by
Kitchener–Cambridge–Waterloo. In Calgary, the decrease was mostly attributable
to commercial buildings, while in Kitchener–Cambridge–Waterloo, the decrease
was attributable to institutional buildings.
Note to readers
Unless otherwise stated, this release presents seasonally adjusted data,
which facilitates comparisons by removing the effects of seasonal
variations. For more information on seasonal adjustment, see Seasonally adjusted data – Frequently asked questions.
The Building Permits Survey covers 2,400 municipalities
representing 95% of the population. The communities representing the
other 5% of the population are very small, and their levels of building
activity have little impact on the total for the entire population.
Building permits data are used as a leading indicator of activity in the
construction industry.
The value of planned construction activities shown in this release excludes
engineering projects (for example, waterworks, sewers or culverts) and land.
For the purpose of this release, the census metropolitan area of
Ottawa–Gatineau (Ontario/Quebec) is divided into two areas: Gatineau part
and Ottawa part.
Revision
Data for the current reference month are subject to revision based on late
responses. Data for the previous month have been revised.
Trend-cycle estimates have been added to the charts as a complement to the
seasonally adjusted series. Both the seasonally adjusted and the trend-cycle
estimates are subject to revision as additional observations become
available. These revisions could be large and even lead to a reversal of
movement, especially at the end of the series. The higher variability
associated with the trend-cycle estimates is indicated with a dotted line on
the chart.
The August building permits data will be released on
October 7.
For more information, contact us
(toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca).
To enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release,
contact Jérémie Bennett (613-951-0793), Investment, Science and Technology
Division.
No comments: