Statistics Canada: Investment in Building Construction, May 2022
Investment in building construction edged down 0.2% to $20.6 billion in May, as many of Ontario’s unionized construction workers were on strike during the month. These strikes caused significant delays in numerous residential and non-residential construction projects throughout the province. Excluding Ontario, investment increased 1.1% at the national level.
At a sector level, non-residential investment fell 0.9% in May, while the residential sector edged up 0.1%.
On a constant dollar basis (2012=100), investment in building construction declined 0.2% to 13.0 billion in May.
Residential sector trend flattens out
In May, investment in the residential sector was largely unchanged at $15.4 billion, following robust growth that started in September 2021. Excluding Ontario, the residential sector continued its upward trend, increasing 1.3% in May.
Multi-unit construction continued to climb, increasing 3.4% to $7.0 billion, with six provinces posting gains, led by Quebec (+10.0%).
Investment in single family homes declined 2.5%, ending its seven-month growth streak. Overall, six provinces reported growth in May, which was offset by declines in four provinces, with Ontario and Quebec causing most of the fall.
Non-residential sector breaks growth streak
Investment in the non-residential sector contracted 0.9% to $5.2 billion in May, with the construction worker strike in Ontario offsetting the gains of eight provinces and driving all three components downwards.
Investment in the industrial component edged down 0.2% to $935 million, with the increase in Quebec (+2.0%) largely offset by the declines in Ontario (-1.2%).
The institutional component fell 0.8% to $1.4 billion, with seven provinces reporting declines.
Despite gains in eight provinces, the commercial component decreased 1.2% to $2.9 billion based on the strike in Ontario. This was the first decline in thirteen months.
For more information on housing, please visit the Housing statistics portal.
For the full press release, click here.
Note to readers
Data are subject to revisions based on late responses, year-end reconciliation and classification updates. Unadjusted data have been revised from January 2019 and seasonally adjusted data have been from January 2017.
Data presented in this release are seasonally adjusted with current dollar values unless otherwise stated. Using seasonally adjusted data allows month-to-month and quarter-to-quarter comparisons by removing the effects of seasonal variations. For information on seasonal adjustment, see Seasonally adjusted data – Frequently asked questions.
Monthly estimates in constant dollars are calculated using quarterly deflators from the Building Construction Price Index (table 18-10-0135-01). Typically, the first two months of a quarter use the previous quarter’s price level, and the data are revised when the new quarterly price index becomes available.
Detailed data on investment activity by type of building and type of work are now available in the unadjusted current dollar series.
Next release
Data on investment in building construction for June will be released on August 12.
Products
Statistics Canada has a “Housing Market Indicators” dashboard. This web application provides access to key housing market indicators for Canada, by province and by census metropolitan area. These indicators are automatically updated with new information from monthly releases, giving users access to the latest data.
Source: Statistics Canada
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