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Indicator Digest

Building Permits
Building permits and mortgage approvals are forward looking indicators as they give an indication to future construction projects. In order to start construction on a home, a building permit must be issued, and this indicator captures the effect. The more homes that are being built and sold, the better that an economy is doing.

Main Indicator: Building Permits

Most Recent Release

June
4th, 2009
Actual Forecast Previous Revised Form
-5.4% -9.2% 24.4% 23.5%

For April
Provided by: Statistics Canada
Official Release: News Release

From the Release: "Contractors took out $4.3 billion in building permits in April, down 5.4% from March. A 14.4% decline in non-residential permits in April more than offset a 4.1% increase in the value of residential permits. In the non-residential sector, the value of permits fell 14.4% to $2.0 billion. The decrease was largely a result of lower commercial construction intentions in Ontario and lower institutional construction intentions in British Columbia. In the residential sector, the value of permits rose 4.1% to $2.3 billion. This was attributable to increases in single-family permits in eight provinces."

Next Release Date: July 07th 2009, 8:30 EST

Table of Past Data

9/810/611/612/41/92/53/54/65/66/4
Actual1.8%-13.5%13.4%-15.7%-11.8%-3.9%-4.6%-15.9%23.5%-5.4%
Forecast-1.0%-1.4%-1.3%-6.0%-4.5%-5.0%-3.5%-3.6%2.6%-9.2%
Previous-5.3%2.6%-13.5%13.4%-15.7%-11.3%-3.6%-4.6%-15.9%24.4%
Revised FromN/AN/AN/AN/AN/A-11.8%-3.9%N/AN/A23.5%

Past Releases

May
6th, 2009
Actual Forecast Previous Revised Form
23.5% 2.6% -15.9% N/A
For March
Provided by: Statistics Canada
Previous Release: News Release
April
6th, 2009
Actual Forecast Previous Revised Form
-15.9% -3.6% -4.6% N/A

For February
Provided by: Statistics Canada
Official Release: News Release

From the Release: "The value of building permits fell 15.9% to $3.7 billion in February. The largest decreases came from the non-residential sector in Ontario.

In the residential sector, the value of permits edged down 0.3% to $2.1 billion. The increase in the value of permits for multiple dwellings in British Columbia nearly offset the declines in the residential sector in six provinces. In the non-residential sector, the value of permits fell 30.5% to $1.6 billion. This decline was due to a drop in Ontario and decreases in four other provinces."

 

March
5th, 2009
Actual Forecast Previous Revised Form
-4.6% -3.5% -3.6% -3.9%

For January
Provided by: Statistics Canada
Official Release: News Release

From the Release: "Contractors took out $4.4 billion in building permits in January, down 4.6% from December. Increases in both institutional and commercial permits were not enough to offset the decreases in the value of residential intentions in five provinces. In the residential sector, the value of permits fell 17.5% to $2.2 billion with declines in both multi-family and single-family permits. The value of permits in the non-residential sector increased 12.2% to $2.3 billion. This was due mainly to higher construction intentions for institutional and commercial permits in Ontario."

 

February
5th, 2009
Actual Forecast Previous Revised Form
-3.9% -5.0% -11.3% -11.8%

For December
Provided by: Statistics Canada
Official Release: News Release

From the Release: "Municipalities issued $4.6 billion in building permits in December, down 3.9% from November. This third consecutive monthly decline was the result of decreases in both the residential and non-residential sectors.

The value of residential permits declined by 3.2% to $2.6 billion, the ninth monthly decrease in 2008. Increases in multi-family permits in Ontario were not enough to offset the declines in single-family permits in Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia.

The value of permits in the non-residential sector declined 4.9% to $2.0 billion, the third consecutive monthly decrease. This decrease came mainly from institutional permits in Alberta and commercial permits in British Columbia.

Construction intentions were down in five provinces and all three territories."

 

January
9th, 2009
Actual Forecast Previous Revised Form
-11.8% -4.5% -15.7% N/A

For November
Provided by: Statistics Canada
Official Release: News Release

From the Release: "Contractors took out $4.8 billion in building permits in November, down 11.8% from October, theresult of widespread declines in both residential and non-residential sectors. It was the third double-digit decrease in four months. November's level, the lowest since February 2007, was 22.6% below last year's monthly average.

The value of non-residential permits fell 15.2% to $2.1 billion, the second consecutive monthly decrease. This drop occurred mainly as a result of declines in Quebec, Ontario and British Columbia.

In the residential sector, the value of building permits declined by 9.0% to $2.7 billion, a level not seen since January 2005. Intentions declined for both single- and multi-family permits. Provincially, Ontario and British Columbia registered the largest decreases in both sectors."

December
4th, 2008
Actual Forecast Previous Revised Form
-15.7% -6.0% 13.4% N/A

For October
Provided by: Statistics Canada
Official Release: News Release

Building permits took a steep tumble in October, wiping away the gains seen in September. This indicator can be volatile, but the intensification of the credit crisis in October may have had a role to play on the sentiment of home builders. Canadian growth is expected to slow as the global economy hits a recession, bringing down demand for Canadian commodity exports.  

From the Release: " The total value of building permits decreased 15.7% to $5.4 billion in October. Construction intentions fell in both the residential and non-residential sectors, and in all provinces except Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador.

On a year-to-date (January to October) basis, the total value of building permits issued by municipalities reached $60.9 billion, down 2.3% from the same period in 2007. The residential sector decreased by 6.5%, while the non-residential sector was 4.2% higher."

November
6th, 2008
Actual Forecast Previous Revised Form
13.4% -1.3% -13.5% N/A

For September
Provided by: Statistics Canada
Official Release: News Release

Canadian builidng permits surged in September, fully rebounding from August's 13.5% decrease.

From the Release: "Municipalities issued $6.5 billion in building permits in September, up 13.4% following an 11.7% decline in August. September's increase was the result of gains in all three components of the non-residential sector. The total value of building permits increased in seven provinces and two territories.

In the non-residential sector, the value of permits rose 41.7% to $3.2 billion. This increase was generated by a substantial gain in institutional permits, and lesser increases in the industrial and commercial components. Major increases occurred in Ontario, Saskatchewan and Alberta.

In the residential sector, the value of permits fell for the second month in a row and the sixth time in nine months. Housing permits declined by 4.9% to $3.3 billion, the result of lower levels of permits for multi-family dwellings in six provinces."

October
6th, 2008
Actual Forecast Previous Revised Form
-13.5% -1.4% 2.6% N/A

For August
Provided by: Statistics Canada
Official Release: News Release

From the Release: "As a result of declines in both the residential and non-residential sectors, the value of building permits fell 13.5% to $5.6 billion in August, a level similar to the one observed in March 2008. On a year-to-date basis, permits were down 0.7% from the same period last year.

In the residential sector, the value of building permits declined by 9.3% to $3.4 billion. This decline was mainly due to a 17.5% drop in multi-family dwellings, coupled with a 3.8% decline in single-family dwellings. New Brunswick (+42.5%), Saskatchewan (+2.6%) and Prince Edward Island (+1.5%) were the only provinces with increases in the residential sector.

After double-digit increases in April and May, the value of non-residential permits declined for the second time in three months. In August, the value in the non-residential sector fell 19.3% to $2.2 billion as a result of declines in all three components (industrial, commercial, institutional)."

September
8th, 2008
Actual Forecast Previous Revised Form
1.8% -1.0% -5.3% N/A

For July
Provided by: Statistics Canada
Official Release: News Release

From the Release: "After declining 5.3% in June, the value of building permits increased 1.8% to $6.4 billion in July, mainly as a result of multi-family dwelling permits in Central Canada and industrial construction intentions in Saskatchewan.

In the residential sector, the value of building permits rose 2.7% to $3.7 billion, mainly as a result of an increase in the value of multi-family dwelling permits in Ontario, Quebec and Manitoba. In the non-residential sector, the value of building permits edged up 0.6% to $2.7 billion. An increase in industrial construction intentions more than offset declines in both commercial and institutional permits."

  • USD/CAD - Loonie Falls Today as Greenback Strengthens: The US Dollar-Canadian Dollar pair rose in favor of the greenback, bouncing up from support at 1.0550. From that low, the pair rallied about 150 pips, stalling for a brief time after the permits release. Other commodity currencies like the Aussie and Kiwi also fell compared to the US Dollar.

    USD/CAD