News in end use

In June, 410,000 Canadians received regular Employment Insurance benefits, up 7,300, or 1.8%, from May. Still, this is far below the number of recipients a year ago.

The advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial unemployment claims was 239,000 during the week ending Saturday, August 12th. This is a decrease of 11,000 from the previous week.

Privately‐owned housing starts in July were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of 1,452,000. This is 3.9% above the revised June estimate of 1,398,000 and 5.9% above the July 2022 rate of 1,371,000.

The standalone monthly SAAR of total housing starts for all areas in Canada decreased 10% in July to 254,966 units, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation reported.

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, mortgage loan application volume decreased 0.8% on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. Unadjusted, the index decreased 2.0%.

Single-family built-for-rent construction has cooled as investor interest has pulled back on tighter financial conditions, according to the US Census Bureau and the National Association of Home Builders.

Almost 60% of metro markets—or 128 out of 221—registered home price gains in 2023Q2, according to the latest quarterly report from the National Association of Realtors®.

Home sales recorded over Canadian MLS® Systems posted a 0.7% month-over-month decline in July, according to the Canadian Real Estate Association.

The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index reported that builder sentiment in the market for newly built single-family homes declined 6 points in August to a reading of 50.

Commercial and multifamily originations were 53% lower in 2023Q2 compared to 2022Q2, according to a survey by the Mortgage Bankers Association.