Ottawa, ON — Investment in building construction decreased 1.1 per cent to $22.4 billion in September, reports Statistics Canada.
Investment in the residential sector dropped 1.7 per cent ($263.1 million) to $15.6 billion in September. The decline was largely attributed to the multi-unit (down 2.5 per cent) and the single-family component (down 0.6 per cent).
Specifically, the losses seen in the multi-unit component were driven by Ontario (down $116.7 million), Alberta (down $72.0 million) and British Columbia (down $32.7 million). In total, seven provinces and two territories contributed to this decrease.
In the single-family home construction component, the decrease was largely attributed to Alberta (down $46.2 million), followed by Ontario (down $42.0 million). Quebec (plus $22.5 million) and Saskatchewan (plus $19.2 million) mitigated the decline.
However, investment in non-residential building construction increased slightly, up $3.3 million to $6.8 billion in September. Moderate gains were observed in the institutional (up 0.7 per cent) and commercial (up 0.1 per cent) components, while the industrial component (down 1.3 per cent) continued to decline.
Specifically, gains seen in the institutional component were driven by Alberta (up $14.8 million) and British Columbia (up $5.9 million). Gains in the commercial component were driven by British Columbia (up $6.5 million), Manitoba (up $5.0 million) and Quebec (up $4.9 million).
Meanwhile, Ontario (down $5.8 million), Alberta (down $5.4 million) and British Columbia (down $4.0 million) led the declines in the industrial component. This marked the eighth consecutive monthly decrease for the sector.