Strength in residential construction offset the weakness seen in some non-residential components
Investment in building construction nationwide saw a minimal 0.4% gain to reach $21.1 billion in August, with most of the gains coming from British Columbia, according to Statistics Canada.
The residential sector saw a 0.5% uptick to $15.7 billion. BC’s 5% increase contributed significantly, impelled by strengthening investments in single-family housing (up by 0.6% to $8.6 billion). StatCan reported that this asset class has remained “relatively stable” over the last six months.
Multi-unit construction investment has also increased by 0.5% to $7.2 billion, with several new apartment projects across Vancouver helping contribute to the growth.
Read more: How can Canada solve its housing supply problem?
Meanwhile, the non-residential sector declined by 0.2% to $5.3 billion in August. This is despite the ninth straight monthly increase in industrial investment (up by 0.9% to $1 billion).
Commercial investment went up slightly by 0.1% to $3 billion, while institutional construction investment fell by 1.4% to $1.3 billion.
“Most of the weakness came from Ontario as investment decreased for the second consecutive month in this component,” StatCan said. “Conversely, Prince Edward Island saw an 88.8% increase for institutional buildings with the construction of a new elementary school in Charlottetown contributing to most of the gains.”
