Building construction investment adds 3.4% in January
Investment in building construction rose slightly in January, adding 3.4 percent from December.
Statistics Canada’s latest report on the metric finds total investment ending the month at $19.1 billion, with gains in all components. After a slight pull-back in the summer, investment has risen steadily since October.
Residential construction investment rose 4.1% to $14.1 billion in January, a fourth consecutive monthly increase.
Investment in single-family homes was up 2.5% to $7.6 billion, with Quebec and British Columbia behind much of the national gain. Multi-unit investment, meanwhile, increased 6.0% to $6.5 billion. Saskatchewan was the only province to post a decrease due to a combination of maturing projects and a lower level of new permits.
Overall, non-residential construction investment increased 1.5% in January, reaching the $5.0 billion mark for the first time since June 2020.
Commercial investment posted its seventh consecutive monthly increase (+1.8% to $2.8 billion) in January, led by Ontario (+2.2%) and British Columbia (+5.0%). The commercial component showed sustained growth over the past few months, particularly for office buildings and warehouses.
Investment in the institutional component advanced 0.6% to $1.4 billion in January. Quebec (+3.1%) posted the largest gain, helping to offset declines reported in seven provinces.
Industrial construction investment rose 2.1% to $864 million, the largest monthly increase since mid-2020.