Canada: Housing starts tick down in July, but remain elevated
Housing starts on a seasonally-adjusted annualized rate (SAAR) basis fell to 222,013 units in July, according to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), down from June’s revised 245,455-units reading (previously reported: 245,657) but beating market expectations. July’s dip was driven by a fall in multiple and single-detached urban starts.
Meanwhile, the six-month average of housing starts on a SAAR basis increased to 208,970 units in July from 205,765 units in June.
Commenting on July’s print, Sri Thanabalasingam, an economist at TD Economics, noted:
“On the whole, homebuilding appears to be more robust than previously thought. While residential investment gains are expected to weaken from an extraordinary second quarter, solid fundamentals – increasing population, low interest rates and rising wages – suggest residential investment could see sustained healthy gains through the second half of this year.”