Canadian Investment in Building Construction Edges Higher in June

Statistics Canada (StatsCan) reported on Friday (8-12-22) that investment in building construction increased by 0.3% to $20.8 billion (CAD) in June. Non-residential sector gains helped to keep the overall building investment positive. June’s gains were the direct result of Ontario reporting gains in all building components. This growth follows a subpar May, the result of a construction workers strike in the province. On a constant dollar basis (2012=100), investment in building construction declined 0.6% to $12.5 billion.

Residential construction investment declined 0.4% to $15.5 in June, despite six provinces reporting growth. This was the first decline in residential investment in nine months. Investment in single-family homes continued to show strength, having outpaced multi-unit construction since the COVID-19 pandemic downturn. It increased 0.7% to $8.6 billion in June, with gains in six provinces. Multi-unit construction investment fell 1.6% to $6.9 billion in June. Despite this decrease, investment in multi-unit construction has shown an overall upward trend since October 2021.

Non-residential construction investment increased 2.4% to $5.3 billion in June. Commercial investment advanced 2.7% to $3.0 billion. Institutional construction investment rose 0.7% to $1.4 billion, with six provinces reporting gains. Investment in the industrial component increased 3.7% to $974 million—the highest monthly value increase since May 2020, just after pandemic-related shutdowns.

For all of Q2, StatsCan is reporting that the total value of investment in building construction rose 3.3% to $62.3 billion, the third consecutive quarterly increase. Investment for residential buildings reached $46.4 billion, largely due to increased spending on multi-unit construction. The non-residential sector rose 2.6% to $15.8 billion.