Construction activity slows in January, as permit values lose 4%
Construction activity slowed across the country in January, with the value of building permits contracting by 4% to $9.8 billion Statistics Canada reported on March 3.
Eight provinces reported decreases in January, with the multi-residential sector in British Columbia significantly contributing to the national fall.
Residential permits decreased for the second month in a row, losing 6.6% to reach $6.1 billion.
The downward trend of multi-family homes continued as construction intentions declined 8.3% in January. Most of the decline stemmed from British Columbia (-27.9% or -$301.2 million). Conversely, Manitoba posted a notable increase (+106.0% or +$63.0 million) in January.
Total permit values for single-family homes decreased 4.4% in January, with Quebec (-13.5% or -$74.6 million) contributing the most to the decline. Alberta (+0.8%) and British Columbia (+0.6%) were the only provinces to post increases for this component.
The total value of non-residential sector permits, meanwhile, was up by 0.7% to $3.7 billion in January. Gains in the commercial component offset losses in both the industrial and institutional components.
Commercial permit values increased 5.4% in January, with Ontario leading the charge (+22.8%). This was the second consecutive monthly increase as the component reached its third-highest recorded value Statistics Canada began collecting such granular data in 2011.
The value of building permits in the industrial component decreased 3.9% in January, with six provinces posting declines. After reaching its peak at over $1 billion in November 2022, the component returned to more normal levels in January 2023.
Finally, construction intentions in the institutional sector decreased 5.9% in January, with Quebec (-21.1%) having the biggest decline. Conversely, British Columbia jumped 43.8% due to an $87 million permit for an educational building in Kelowna.