Canada: Municipalities issued $7.7 billion worth of building permits in May

"Canadian municipalities issued $7.7 billion worth of building permits in May, up 8.9% from April and the third highest value on record," said the Statistics Canada today.

Key highlights:

• The national increase was mainly the result of higher construction intentions for residential buildings, particularly in Ontario
• Seven provinces registered gains in the total value of building permits in May, and every building component increased except institutional structures
• The value of residential building permits issued by Canadian municipalities increased 10.8% from April to $5.0 billion in May
• The value of building permits issued for non-residential structures rose 5.6% in May to $2.7 billion, marking a third consecutive monthly increase