Ottawa, Ontario — Following five months of decline, investment in building construction increased 1.6 per cent to $17.8 billion in October, according to Statistics Canada. Provincially, Québec led the pack with an increase of 3.5 per cent.
For the first time in five months, residential investment rose 1.4 per cent to $12.9 billion in October. Leading the national gain were Québec and Saskatchewan with increases of 3.3 per cent and 16.7 per cent, respectively.
Overall, investment in single-family homes increased. The growth came despite Ontario reporting a decline of 2.2 per cent. Québec and Alberta reported the most notable increases.
Multi-unit construction investment rose 2.4 per cent to $5.9 billion, even though New Brunswick has recorded declines for six months in a row.
Non-residential construction investment rose 2.0 per cent to $4.9 billion, the highest value since July 2020. In addition, commercial investment rose 2.6 per cent to $2.7 billion, with British Columbia (down 0.8 per cent) recording the only decrease among the provinces,
Following large gains from Quebec (plus 5.8 per cent), investment in the institutional component rose 1.3 per cent to $1.4 billion. Even though Québec reported a gain, six provinces reported declines.
Lastly, industrial construction investment increased 1.4 per cent to $839 million, with Ontario reporting the highest increase, up 1.8 per cent.