Canada building permits up slightly in June

The value of Canadian building permits rose a tepid 2.1 percent in June after a 20.9 percent increase in May, Statistics Canada said on Friday.

The median forecast in a Reuters survey of analysts had been for a 5.0 percent decline.

Nonresidential permits, which had an outsized 51.1 percent gain in May, continued to advance by 3.0 percent in June, led by a 78.7 percent jump in the industrial sector.

Residential permits rose by 1.5 percent after a 5.2 percent increase in May. Single-family homes advanced while multi-family dwellings declined slightly after a substantial gain in May.

The year-on-year picture was less bright, showing a 0.5 percent decline overall, though the residential component was up 5.6 percent.

Financial Post August 5th