Building permit values rise 9% in February
The total value of building permits issued by municipalities across the country rose by 9.3% in February to reach $11.8 billion, Statistics Canada reports.
The total monthly value of non-residential permits increased 12.3% to $4.7 billion.
The growth was mostly attributed to the industrial component, which increased 57.8% to $1.3 billion in February. Permits for large industrial construction projects were issued across the country. They included permits for the construction of a new battery plant in Windsor, Ontario, a new dairy processing facility in Abbotsford, British Columbia, a new pea processing plant in Yorkton, Saskatchewan, and the expansion of an aluminum smelting facility in Saguenay, Quebec.
The monthly growth in the non-residential sector in February was also supported by the increase in the institutional component (+18.2% to $1.3 billion).
The total monthly value of residential permits increased 7.4% to $7.1 billion in February. Ontario (+14.2% to $2.8 billion) contributed the most to the rise in value of both single-family and multi-family dwelling permits.
Intentions for residential construction growth were divided between single-dwelling (+9.6%; +$248.2 million) and multi-dwelling (+6.0%; +$239.3 million) permits in February.
In addition to Ontario, British Columbia (+5.9%; +$76.4 million), Quebec (+3.9%; +$44.2 million) and Alberta (+3.9%; +$41.7 million) were the primary contributors to the second consecutive monthly increase in the residential sector.
Across Canada, 16,400 new dwellings in multi-unit buildings and 4,600 new single-family dwellings were authorized in February. From March 2023 to February 2024, a total of 253,400 new units were authorized.