Housing rebound lifts September construction investment
A strong month for housing helped bolster building construction investment in September.
Statistics Canada reports investment levels rose by 5.3% for the month, reaching $18.9 billion.
Investment in residential building construction went up 7.3% to reach $12.9 billion. Growth was strongest in Ontario (+6.7%; +$325.1 million), Quebec (+9.1%; +$191.6 million), and Alberta (+10.6%; +$164.6 million).
Single-family home investment increased by 6.4% to $6.3 billion, while multi-unit construction grew by 8.2% to $6.6 billion. Ontario (+7.3%; +$180.2 million) led the way in the multi-unit sector, while Alberta (+21.6%; +$141.0 million) contributed its largest monthly increase since April 2018.
Investment in non-residential construction, meanwhile, rose 1.2% to $6.0 billion. The increase was driven mainly by Ontario, which accounted for 72.8% of the sector gains.
Industrial construction investment increased 1.2% to $1.2 billion for the month. Total investment in the component has now risen by more than 16% over the last 12 months.
Institutional construction investment rose 4.3% to $1.5 billion. Ontario (+11.4%; +$58.7 million) led the way, with a large hospital renovation in Toronto and the construction of a correctional facility in Thunder Bay contributing to growth in the province.
Commercial construction investment edged down 0.2% to $3.2 billion in September.
Third quarter declines due to residential sector
Across the country, investment in building construction fell 2.8% to $54.7 billion in the third quarter. It marked the fourth consecutive quarterly decrease.
Investment in residential building construction was down by 4.4% from the second quarter to $36.7 billion in the third quarter, driven by declines in single family home investment.
Investment in non-residential construction was up 0.5% to $17.9 billion in the third quarter, the 11th consecutive quarterly increase. Investment in institutional construction accounted for much of the increase, up 2.4% to $4.5 billion. Industrial construction investment edged up 0.2% to $3.7 billion, while commercial investment decreased 0.3% to $9.8 billion.