Construction down in province in December

JOE BRYKSA / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS ARCHIVES Enlarge Image

Construction was down in Manitoba by the end of 2011, following months of increased activity.

WINNIPEG — Manitoba’s construction industry ended 2011 with a whimper instead of a bang, posting the biggest monthly decline in building permit activity in the country.

Statistics Canada said Manitoba municipalities issued only $142.3 million worth of permits during December. That was a drop of 33.4 per cent from November’s $213.7 million.

The dropoff in activity followed two consecutive months of double-digit gains — 24 per cent in October and 17.2 per cent in November.

The bulk of December’s decline was in the value of non-residential permits issued — off by 65 per cent to a meagre $35.9 million from $102.7 million. Residential permits, by comparison, were down by 4.1 per cent to $106.4 million from $111 million in November.

Canada’s construction industry, on the other hand, ended the year on a strong note, with permit values hitting their highest level since June 2007 at $6.8 billion.

That was a jump of 11.1 per cent from November, with the biggest drivers being a surge in multi-family permits in Ontario and permits for commercial buildings in Alberta.

The value of residential sector permits in Canada climbed by 16.1 per cent to $4.5 billion in a second consecutive monthly increase.

Major projects in Ontario pushed permits for multi-family dwellings up 28.9 per cent to $1.9 billion, the highest level since December 2005.

In the non-residential sector, the value of permits grew by 2.8 per cent to $2.4 billion. That followed a 15.1 per cent drop in November.

StatsCan said permit totals were up in five provinces, led by Ontario, Alberta and Quebec. Saskatchewan had the second-biggest decline, at 31.2 per cent.

murray.mcneill@freepress.mb.ca