Construction intentions softened in March
Both residential and non-residential permit value decreased
By Rob Roach, ATB Economics 10 May 2022 1 min read
The total seasonally-adjusted value of building permits issued by Alberta municipalities* decreased by 2.8% (-$33.9 million) in March to just under $1.2 billion.
Residential intentions pulled back by 1.4% (-$11.0 million). Single dwelling residential permits went up by 2.8% (+$14.7 million) while permits for multiple dwelling projects went down by 9.8% (-$25.7 million).
Non-residential permit value took a bigger hit in March, falling by 5.3% (-$22.9 million). Permits for industrial building projects were down by 37.2% (-$17.1 million) while commercial permits slipped by 20.2% (-$60.9 million). Institutional and governmental permit value went in the other direction, rising by 65.0% (+$55.1 million).
When price inflation in the building sector is removed, the monthly decline in permit value in Alberta was somewhat worse, falling by 3.3% in March.
Nationally, total building permit value in March contracted by 9.3% with lower permits in the commercial sector (-7.2%) and the institutional and governmental sector (-58.5%) responsible for the monthly drop.
Adjusting for price changes, the total value of building permits in the country was down by 11.5% in March.
*Statistics Canada’s Building Permits Survey covers all Canadian municipalities that issue permits.
Answer to the previous trivia question: The international song contest Eurovision is held every year in May.
Today’s trivia question: As of April 2022, how many “employed persons” were there in Canada? (Employed persons are those who did any work for pay or profit or had a job and were absent from work.)
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