Canadian Investment in Building Construction Declined 1.9% in May

Statistics Canada (StatsCan) is reporting that investment in building construction modestly slowed in May, declining -1.9% to $19.4 billion (CAD). This was the first drop in building construction since April of 2020. Residential construction investment was down -2.7% to $14.8 billion in May, with declines in both single and multifamily construction. Despite the decrease in May, single-unit investment remained approximately 60.0% above pre-COVID-19 levels. Non-residential construction increased 0.6% to $4.7 billion. Investment in commercial construction increased 0.8% to $2.6 billion. Institutional investment continued to grow for the seventh consecutive month, up 1.2% to $1.2 billion. Seven provinces saw declines in industrial construction, which decreased 0.7% to $837 million nationally.