According to Statistics Canada, total investment in building construction increased 0.5 percent in July to $15.2 billion, with gains in both the residential (+0.6 percent to $10.4 billion) and non-residential (+0.3 percent to $4.8 billion) sectors.
The multi-unit residential component was the only investment component to post a decline for the month of July, down 1.6 percent to $5.2 billion, mainly as a result of decreases in British Columbia (-$149.9 million) and Saskatchewan (-$43.8 million). Investment in single-unit construction was up 2.9 percent to $5.2 billion, driven by Ontario (+$139.3 million) and Nova Scotia (+$32.6 million). This increase more than offset the decline in investment in multi-unit construction.
The commercial (+0.3 percent to $2.8 billion), industrial (+0.2 percent to $911.1 million) and institutional components (+0.1 percent to $1.1 billion) were all up slightly in July.
On an unadjusted basis, investment in new non-residential building construction grew 3.3 percent to $2.3 billion, led by the province of Quebec (+9.4 percent to $404.7 million). This was attributable in part to projects such as a government building valued at $151.0 million in the newly developing eco-neighborhood of Estimauville in the city of Québec.