Ottawa, ON — Canada’s total monthly value of building permits increased 6.1 per cent in June 2023 to $11.6 billion, reports Statistics Canada. However, the full value of building permits in the second quarter declined one per cent from the first quarter to $32.2 billion.
The total monthly value of non-residential permits increased by 20.4 per cent to $4.7 billion in June.
Declines in the commercial construction intentions (down 7.7 per cent) were more than offset by gains in the industrial (up by 51.0 per cent) and institutional (up by 67.2 per cent) components.
The two highest-valued permits in June were issued for the construction of new hospitals in Vaudreuil-Dorion, Que. and Dawson Creek, B.C., totalling 58.6 per cent of the total value of institutional construction intentions.
In the second quarter, the total value of permits in the non-residential sector fell 9.6 per cent to $12.0 billion. This comes after the sector’s record-high first quarter.
On the residential side, the total monthly value of residential permits declined 1.8 per cent to $6.9 billion in June, despite seven provinces reporting gains.
Ontario (down 11.4 per cent) contributed the most to the decline, while Saskatchewan (down 51.4 per cent) and New Brunswick (down 20.5 per cent) also posted notable declines.
Across Canada, permits for 22,000 new dwellings were issued in June.
Despite the overall decline, the residential sector broke a three-quarter slump, increasing 4.9 per cent in the second quarter to $20.3 billion.