Building construction investment drops in January
Investment in building construction dropped by almost 1% in January as a pull-back in demand for new housing more than offset a slight gain in non-residential construction.
Total investment for the month was $19.7 billion – 0.9% less than a month prior.
Investment in residential building construction declined by $194 million (-1.4%) to $13.6 billion in January. The decline was led by a drop of $228 million in Ontario (-4.1% to $5.4 billion).
Nationally, investment in detached single-family homes increased 2.1% to $6.7 billion in January, with eight provinces reporting gains for this component. Multi-unit family investment declined 4.5% to $6.9 billion in January, driven by declines in Ontario as the pace of new construction starts in the province slowed in January 2024 compared with earlier in 2023.
Investment in the non-residential sector edged up in January (+0.2%), increasing for the third consecutive month to reach a record high of $6.1 billion. Gains in institutional (+$32.3 million to $1.7 billion) and industrial (+$7.3 million to $1.3 billion) investments were largely offset by declines in commercial investment (-$26.2 million to $3.1 billion).
The decline in commercial investment for January represents the seventh consecutive monthly decline, with seven provinces contributing to the negative movement.