Canadian building permits jump in March

The value of Canadian building permits soared in March as construction companies showed renewed interest in erecting plants and office buildings, Statistics Canada said Wednesday.

Canada's statistical agency said that the value of new permits to build residences and other structures jumped 23.5 per cent in March compared to one month earlier. That increase represented the first month in six in which the building permits rose rather than fell.

In March, firms indicated their intention to construct $4.5 billion worth of new homes, condominiums, manufacturing and other buildings.

Non-housing rise

Better still, while the residential sector gained, intentions to build new plants and institutional structures, such as hospitals, especially in recession-racked Ontario, showed an even greater increase, Statistics Canada said.

"Intentions in the non-residential sector rose 47.9 per cent to $2.3 billion, in the wake of increases in the commercial and institutional components in Ontario, Quebec and Alberta," the federal agency said.

The building permit indicator tracks the intention to construct something, not the actual erection of that structure.

Still, March's reading — in which six provinces saw permits for non-residential construction jump — was a marked improvement versus February, when the same indicator dropped by one-third.

The latest permits figures were the best showing since December when companies asked permission to build $4.6 billion worth of various structures.

Provincial gains

Ontario saw non-residential permits more than double in March, hitting slightly more than $1 billion in the month compared to $500 million in February.

Alberta also saw its non-housing component rise in March, in that case by one-third.

Residential permissions rose albeit by a more modest 7.3 per cent in the third month of the year with Alberta and Quebec leading the home building charge.