Canadian Building Permits Slip 10.3% in June

Canadian building permit values for residential housing dropped in June following three consecutive months of increases.  Both multi and single family dwelling permits experienced declines, with Ontario posting the largest decreases.  Single family construction permit values decreased 7.4 percent to $2.2 billion and multi-family units decreased 18.8 percent to $1.8 billion.  A total of 17,656 residential housing unit permits were issued, down 12.2 percent from May.

Non-residential permit values were down 9.5 percent month-over-month to $1.4 billion.  Decreases were seen in six provinces led by Quebec, while British Columbia posted the largest gain due to planned construction of office buildings and service stations.

Industrial permit values fell 21.5 percent to $493 million after posting a 40 percent gain in May.  Gains were seen in six provinces but not enough to offset declines in the other four.  Quebec and British Columbia had fewer intentions for manufacturing plants; Quebec saw a drop in permits for utilities buildings.

Institutional permit values increased for the first time in three months by 14.6 percent to $820 million. Ontario posted increased construction intentions for long-term care facilities and educational buildings while Alberta saw an increase in permits for medical facilities.