Canadian Building Permits Increase 21% in February

On Monday (4-4-22), Statistics Canada (StatsCan) reported that the total value of building permits climbed 21.0% in February, with British Columbia leading the way with a 130.2% increase. On a constant dollar basis (2012=100), the total value of building permits increased 22.1% in February.

At the national level, residential sector construction intentions rose 9.8% to $7.5 billion (CAD) with nine provinces reporting gains. Gains in multi-family permit values in British Columbia (+57.9%) reversed January’s decline and contributed to the 18.5% increase at the national level, along with the gains in seven other provinces. The total value of single-family home permits rose 1.5% in February. Seven provinces reported increases.

The total value of non-residential sector building permits in February surged 43.2% to $4.9 billion. The increase reflects two large hospital projects, one in Vancouver and the other in Quebec. The value of commercial permits gained 5.6% in February at the national level, with six provinces reporting increases. A $112 million Wawanesa Insurance office headquarters project caused the value of commercial permits in Manitoba to jump 337.4%. The total value of industrial building intentions fell 27.9% mostly due to declines in Quebec (-44.8%) and Ontario (-28.8%).