Building permit values rise in May

Building permit values jumped more than 10% in May to reach $10.5 billion.

In its latest report on the metric, Statistics Canada attributes the growth to a significant rise in housing activity in Ontario.

The total value of residential permits rose 8.5% to $6.8 billion in May, with Ontario contributing to 45.8% of Canada's residential permit values.

Ontario increased 16.3% month-over-month to $3.1 billion, led by multi-dwelling permits issued in urban areas.

Across the country, municipalities issued permits for 3,800 new single-family homes, compared with permits for 17,700 new dwellings in multi-unit buildings.

The total monthly value of non-residential permits, meanwhile, rose 14.2% to $3.7 billion in.

Commercial permits surged (+45.8% or +$703.4 million), more than offsetting monthly losses in the institutional component (-23.3% or -$251.3 million).

Despite overall monthly gains, the value of non-residential construction intentions in May was down 11.2% year over year.