According to Statistics Canada, total investment in Canadian building construction increased 2.6 percent in April to $14.8 billion. Investment in the residential sector (+3.6 percent to $10.1 billion) led the growth, while the non-residential sector edged up 0.3 percent to $4.7 billion. On a constant dollar basis (2012=100), investment in building construction rose 2.9 percent to $12.5 billion.
In April, total investment in residential building construction increased on the strength of investment in multi-unit dwellings (+7.1 percent to $5.1 billion), while investment in single-family homes edged up 0.3 percent to $5.0 billion.
Provincially, gains in multi-unit investment were led by British Columbia (+$205 million), Manitoba (+$94 million) and Quebec (+$75 million). The multi-unit increase in British Columbia was driven by investment in high-value projects like the mixed use Lougheed Town Centre project in the City of Burnaby.
Provincially, non-residential investment was up slightly in Quebec (+$19 million) and British Columbia (+$16 million). These gains were partially offset by declines in Alberta (-$11 million) and Ontario (-$11 million).
Of the three components in the non-residential sector, the institutional component posted the largest gain (+0.5 percent to $1.1 billion), due to projects such as the Greenfield Park Retirement Residence in Longueil, Quebec.
Investment in the commercial component edged up 0.3 percent to $2.7 billion in April, as the growth in British Columbia, Quebec and Manitoba was greater than the declines in Ontario and Alberta.
Investment in the industrial component edged up 0.1 percent from the previous month.