Major markets accounted for much of the strength
Investment in building construction increased by 1.8% to $20.3 billion in March, with upward momentum registered in both the residential (1.7%) and non-residential (2%) sectors, according to Statistics Canada.
The residential construction segment saw its sixth straight month of investment gains, reaching $15.1 billion in March. StatCan attributed this strength to Ontario, which it said accounted for approximately three-quarters of the March increase – bringing the national total near the record high seen in April 2021.
Single-family homes saw their investment volume grow by 4.3% to $8.4 billion, again spurred by Ontario (up by 6.2%). On the other hand, multi-unit construction investment dropped by 1.4% to $6.7 billion in March, with increases in British Columbia (up by 3.8%) being outweighed by declines in six provinces, StatCan reported.
Read more: Canadian housing starts rose in April – CMHC
Non-residential construction investment saw its ninth straight monthly increase, with Quebec accounting for more than half of the sector’s March gains. Commercial investment went up by 2.4% to $2.9 billion, while industrial investment grew by 1.9% to $910 million.
Institutional investment was also a strong performer (up by 1.1%), with its third consecutive month of increases pushing the segment’s total to $1.4 billion in March.
