CANADA DATA: May Housing Starts -0.2%, Toronto YOY Starts -22%
Jun-16 12:36
Seasonally adjusted monthly starts -0.2% in May to 279,510 units, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. says Monday.
Six-month trend was also little changed +0.8% in May to 243,407 units.
Toronto May YOY housing starts -22% and Vancouver -10%, both due to lower multi-unit starts. Montreal +11% YOY boosted by multi-units.
“Growth in actual starts activity in May was once again driven by increases of single-detached homes and purpose-built rentals in Québec and the Prairie provinces. By contrast, weak condominium market conditions in Toronto and Vancouver have contributed to significant declines in overall housing starts in these regions,’’ said Tania Bourassa-Ochoa, CMHC’s Deputy Chief Economist.
Government has pledged to double the pace of homebuilding to address supply squeeze; most economists note a lack of workers to achieve that goal.
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