According to Statistics Canada, investment in building construction increased by 1.9 percent to $18.4 billion in December. Gains were reported in both the residential and non-residential sectors.
Residential construction investment rose 2.2 percent to $13.4 billion in December, with Ontario accounting for more than half of the monthly increase.
Investment in single family homes was up 3.5 percent to $7.4 billion with increases posted in eight provinces.
Multi-unit construction investment increased by 0.7 percent to $6.1 billion. Gains from Ontario (+1.0 percent) helped to offset declines posted in Quebec (-1.0 percent) and Saskatchewan (-5.5 percent). New Brunswick and Nova Scotia also showed notable strength.
Commercial investment advanced by 1.7 percent to $2.7 billion. Alberta (+6.5 percent) led the way, partly because of the BMO convention center expansion project in Calgary.
Industrial construction investment increased by 1.6 percent to $842 million, led by Ontario (+2.4 percent) and Quebec (+1.9 percent).
Conversely, investment in institutional construction posted its first decline since late 2020, with eight provinces reporting decreases.
Overall, non-residential construction investment increased by 1.1 percent in December to $4.9 billion.
On a full-year 2021 analysis, investment in building construction had a record year, jumping 19.3 percent to $218.2 billion.
Investment in residential construction was up 28.4 percent to $162.0 billion, with single-unit investment accounting for more than half of the gain. Similarly, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation reported a 20 percent jump in construction starts from 2020.
Despite a strong fourth quarter, investment in non-residential construction saw a slight decrease of 0.9 percent to $56.2 billion in 2021. The decrease reported by commercial (-5.4 percent) and industrial (-3.4 percent) construction was somewhat offset by growth in institutional investment (up 12.0 percent to $15.2 billion).