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Monday, April 6, 1998
For release at 8:30 a.m.
February 1998
Led by a surge in proposed new commercial projects, the value of building permits in February for non-residential construction reached its highest level in almost eight years. This jump, combined with a much smaller rise in residential intentions, helped to push the overall total for building permits in February to just over $2.9 billion, also nearly an eight-year high.
Chart: Total value of permits up 14.3%
Non-residential permits, which cover commercial, institutional and industrial projects, soared 30.5% from January to $1.4 billion, their highest level since June 1990. This increase more than offset the declines in the sector during the previous two months.
On the other hand, the value of housing permits rose just 2.1% to $1.5 billion. This rise was due to construction intentions for multi-family housing.
Overall, municipalities issued a total of more than $2.9 billion in building permits in February, the highest level since March 1990. This represented a 14.3% increase from January. The two-month total for January and February this year was 12.7% higher than for the same period last year.
Commercial construction intentions climbed 58.0% to $795 million in February, the result of intentions for office buildings and projects in the trade and services area. This was the second best showing for the commercial component since March 1990, exceeded only by the level in December 1997.
Permits for industrial construction followed, increasing 42.7% from January to $371 million. This resulted mostly from new construction plans for manufacturing plants and for the utility and transportation area.
Unless otherwise stated, this release presents seasonally adjusted data that ease comparisons by removing the effects of seasonal variations.
The monthly Building and Demolitions Permits Survey covers 2,600 municipalities representing 94% of the population. It provides an early indication of building activity. The communities representing the other 6% of the population are very small and their levels of building activity have little impact on the total.
The value of planned construction activities shown in this release excludes engineering projects (e.g., waterworks, sewers, culverts, etc.) and land. The annual rate is a monthly figure that has been seasonally adjusted and multiplied by 12 to reflect annual levels.
The activity in both these components more than compensated for a 19.7% decline in the institutional sector, down to $272 million in February. This sector suffered from a drop in planned government administration construction, where activity was high in the previous month.
The value of permits in the non-residential sector as a whole rose 30.5% to $1.4 billion after two consecutive monthly drops. The two-month total for non-residential building permits for January and February this year was 50.0% higher than for the same period in 1997. Growth in the non-residential sector, excluding machinery and equipment and engineering projects, has been a major contributor to the overall upward trend in building permits since January 1997. This pattern appears likely to continue, given the levels of private and public investment that are planned for 1998 (see The Daily, February 25, 1998).
Chart: Non-residential construction
intentions led the increase
The largest contributor to February's overall advance in the non-residential sector was Quebec, where permits soared 146.1% to $320 million, led mainly by utility building construction plans in the industrial component. Gains were also significant in Alberta (+81.1% to $225 million) and Manitoba (+110.6% to $39 million).
By contrast, the most significant decreases in the non-residential sector were recorded in New Brunswick (-39.8% to $9 million) and Prince Edward Island (-85.4% to $0.4 million). New Brunswick suffered from declines in the commercial and institutional components; drops in all three components were noted in Prince Edward Island.
The value of building permits for multi-family dwellings increased 19.7% to $433 million, their highest level since September 1997. This solid increase offset a 3.7% decline in single-family intentions, which reached $1.1 billion. It was the second straight monthly decline for the single-family component. The activity in both components raised the total value of residential permits by 2.1% over January, to $1.5 billion.
During January and February of this year, municipalities issued $3.0 billion in residential permits, just under the $3.2 billion total for the same two months in 1997, which was a strong year for residential development.
Market indicators, among them low mortgage rates and favourable expectations for job creation, bode well for the continuation of the upward trend that has occurred in housing since 1996. Sales of new and existing homes, which have been slightly above the average of the last 10 years, showed a gain in February after three monthly declines. Furthermore, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation reported an 11.0% increase in housing starts in February. Residential investment intentions are also rising, as indicated in Statistics Canada's Public and Private Investment Survey in February.
Ontario led the housing sector's activity in February, surging 11.9% over January to $660 million. This occurred on the strength of a sharp increase in the value of multi-family dwellings that more than compensated for a drop in single-family housing intentions. In addition, Quebec posted a 3.2% increase in the value of its residential permits to $227 million, also due to multi-family intentions.
By contrast, the largest declines in total residential permits occurred in British Columbia (-10.8% to $243 million) and Manitoba (-27.8% to $27 million). In each province, both components declined, multi-family the most.
Available on CANSIM: matrices 80 (levels 3-7, 16-22, 24-32), 129, 137, 443, 989-992, 994-995 and 4073.
The February 1998 issue of Building permits will be released in April. It will be available on paper (64-001-XPB, $25/$248) and via the Internet (64-001-XIB, $19). See How to order publications.
The March 1998 estimates of building permits will be released on May 4. For further information, contact Joanne Bureau (613-951-9689; Internet: Burejoa@statcan.ca). For analytical information, contact Alain Paquet (613-951-2025; Internet: Paquala@statcan.ca), Current Investment Indicators Section, Investment and Capital Stock Division.
Table: Value of building permits
______________________________________________________________________________
Jan. 1998 Feb. 1998 Jan. 1998 to
Feb. 1998
______________________________________________________________________________
seasonally adjusted
_______________________________________________
$ millions % change
______________________________ _____________
Canada 2,565 2,933 14.3
Residential 1,464 1,495 2.1
Non-residential 1,102 1,438 30.5
Newfoundland 26 21 -16.7
Residential 18 12 -33.9
Non-residential 8 9 24.8
Prince Edward Island 6 5 -21.3
Residential 3 4 41.0
Non-residential 3 0 -85.4
Nova Scotia 31 44 43.2
Residential 23 23 -0.2
Non-residential 7 21 178.9
New Brunswick 34 27 -19.4
Residential 19 18 -3.2
Non-residential 15 9 -39.8
Quebec 350 547 56.2
Residential 220 227 3.2
Non-residential 130 320 146.1
Ontario 1,200 1,287 7.2
Residential 590 660 11.9
Non-residential 610 627 2.7
Manitoba 56 66 17.8
Residential 38 27 -27.8
Non-residential 18 39 110.6
Saskatchewan 31 32 5.8
Residential 18 18 -0.7
Non-residential 12 14 15.8
Alberta 384 485 26.2
Residential 260 259 -0.1
Non-residential 124 225 81.1
British Columbia 445 415 -6.7
Residential 273 243 -10.8
Non-residential 173 172 -0.2
Yukon 2 2 8.8
Residential 1 1 -26.7
Non-residential 0 1 224.7
Northwest Territories 1 1 -13.7
Residential 0 0 -34.8
Non-residential 1 1 -5.2
______________________________________________________________________________
Feb. 1997 to
Feb. 1998
______________________________________________________________________________
seasonally
adjusted
% change
Canada 18.9
Residential -5.5
Non-residential 62.3
Newfoundland -18.9
Residential -39.3
Non-residential 41.8
Prince Edward Island 90.5
Residential 118.7
Non-residential -16.8
Nova Scotia -43.9
Residential -63.2
Non-residential 35.3
New Brunswick -16.0
Residential -11.0
Non-residential -24.5
Quebec 19.8
Residential -9.5
Non-residential 55.6
Ontario 26.8
Residential 3.4
Non-residential 66.7
Manitoba 0.8
Residential -3.5
Non-residential 4.0
Saskatchewan -10.1
Residential -5.6
Non-residential -15.4
Alberta 49.0
Residential 16.1
Non-residential 121.1
British Columbia -2.3
Residential -22.0
Non-residential 52.3
Yukon -37.0
Residential -53.2
Non-residential 20.1
Northwest Territories 82.9
Residential 5.6
Non-residential 129.0
______________________________________________________________________________
Note: Data may not add to totals due to rounding.
February 1998
Steel pipe and tubing production for February totalled 212 123 metric tonnes, a 21.3% increase from 174 803 tonnes a year earlier.
Year-to-date production to the end of February 1998 totalled 428 094 tonnes, up 16.9% from 366 285 tonnes during the same period in 1997.
Available on CANSIM: matrix 35.
The February 1998 issue of Steel Pipe and Tubing (41-011-XPB, $7/$62) will be available shortly. See How to order publications.
For further information on this release, contact Andy Shinnan (613-951-3515), Manufacturing, Construction and Energy Division (Internet: shinand@statcan.ca) .
February 1998
Manufacturers shipped 525 209 metric tonnes of cement in February, up 12.1% from 468 333 tonnes in February 1997 and up 22.7% from 428 118 (revised) tonnes in January 1998.
For January to February 1998, shipments totalled 953 327 (revised) tonnes, a 10.7% increase from 861 347 tonnes during the same period in 1997.
Available on CANSIM: matrices 92 and 122 (series 35).
The February 1998 issue of Cement (44-001-XPB, $7/$62) will be available shortly. See How to order publications.
For further information on this release, contact Roland Joubert (613-951-3527), Manufacturing, Construction and Energy Division (Internet: rjouber@statcan.ca) .
February 1998
Chemical firms produced 180 752 metric tonnes of polyethylene synthetic resins in February, a 7% increase from 168 980 tonnes in February 1997.
For January to February 1998, production totalled 376 761 tonnes, up 10.6% from 340 617 (revised) tonnes a year earlier.
Data are also available on the production of 3 other types of synthetic resins and 24 industrial chemicals.
Available on CANSIM: matrix 951.
The February 1998 issue of Industrial chemicals and synthetic resins (46-002-XPB, $7/$62) will be available shortly. See How to order publications.
For further information on this release, contact Suzette DesRosiers (613-951-9836), Manufacturing, Construction and Energy Division (Internet: desrosi@statcan.ca) .
1996
The Annual Survey of Manufactures provides information on over 200 different industries. Principal statistics for each industry are released on CANSIM as they become available. Data for the industries listed in the following table are now available. Data for 106 industries have now been released.
Available on CANSIM: matrices 5414, 5464, 5520, 5569, 5570, 5583, 5584, 5585, 6852, 6857, 6872, and 6877.
Data for the industries listed in the table will appear in Rubber and Plastic Products Industries (33-250-XPB, $40), Wood Industries (35-250-XPB, $55), Fabricated Metal Products Industries (41-251-XPB, $40), Electrical and Electronic Products Industries (43-250-XPB, $40), Non-metallic Mineral Products Industries (44-250-XPB, $40), Chemical and Chemical Products Industries (46-250-XPB, $40), and Products Shipped by Canadian Manufacturers (31-211-XPB, $67). The 1995 issues of most of these publications are now available. See How to order publications.
For further information on this release, look under contact in the following table (fax: 613-951-9499; Internet: Pentlii@statcan.ca).
A technical paper, Personalized Questionnaires for Canada's Annual Survey of Manufactures, has been issued as a Business and Trade Statistics Field Research Paper. It is available in print (61F0041MPE, $5) and electronic format (61F0041MIE, viewable free on the Internet) through www.statcan.ca . This paper describes the personalization of the long-form questionnaires of Statistics Canada's Annual Survey of Manufactures. Personalization was motivated by the desire to reduce respondent burden. The paper will be useful to users of manufacturing data and to interested respondents.
For further information or to order the publication, contact John Crysdale (613-951-3589; fax: 613-951-6196; Internet: crysdal@statcan.ca), Enterprise Statistics Division.
Table: Value of shipments
______________________________________________________________________________
1995 1996 1995 to 1996
______________________________________________________________________________
$ millions % change
__________________________________ _______________
Industry
(Standard
Industrial
Classification)
Foamed and
expanded
plastic
products (1611) 650.6 753.4 15.8
Wooden kitchen
and bathroom
vanities (2542) 957.2 1,058.7 10.6
Other fabricated
structural
metal products
(3029) 1,434.6 1,683.8 17.4
Major appliances
(electric and
non-electric)
(3321) 941.4 893.6 -5.1
Lighting
fixtures (3331) 447.3 462.3 3.4
Communications
and energy
wire and cable
(3381) 2,014.5 1,790.3 -11.1
Battery (3391) 224.5 238.0 6.0
Noncurrent-
carrying
wiring devices
(3392) 161.6 170.2 5.4
Concrete pipe
(3541) 204.9 202.5 -1.1
Glass products
(except glass
containers)
(3562) 777.5 888.6 14.3
Chemical
fertilizer and
fertilizer
materials
(3721) 1,390.8 1,580.7 13.7
Paint and
varnish (3751) 1,581.3 1,688.7 6.8
______________________________________________________________________________
Publication Contact
catalogue
number
______________________________________________________________________________
Industry
(Standard
Industrial
Classification)
Foamed and
expanded
plastic
products (1611) 33-250-XPB N. Charron (613)
Wooden kitchen
and bathroom
vanities (2542) 35-250-XPB G. Simard (613)
Other fabricated
structural
metal products
(3029) 41-251-XPB E. Saint-Pierre (613)
Major appliances
(electric and
non-electric)
(3321) 43-250-XPB L. Vincent (613)
Lighting
fixtures (3331) 43-250-XPB L. Vincent (613)
Communications
and energy
wire and cable
(3381) 43-250-XPB L. Vincent (613)
Battery (3391) 43-250-XPB L. Vincent (613)
Noncurrent-
carrying
wiring devices
(3392) 43-250-XPB L. Vincent (613)
Concrete pipe
(3541) 44-250-XPB R. Sheldrick (613)
Glass products
(except glass
containers)
(3562) 44-250-XPB R. Sheldrick (613)
Chemical
fertilizer and
fertilizer
materials
(3721) 46-250-XPB N. Charron (613)
Paint and
varnish (3751) 46-250-XPB N. Charron (613)
______________________________________________________________________________
Contact
______________________________________________________________________________
Industry
(Standard
Industrial
Classification)
Foamed and
expanded
plastic
products (1611) 951-3510
Wooden kitchen
and bathroom
vanities (2542) 951-3516
Other fabricated
structural
metal products
(3029) 951-9837
Major appliances
(electric and
non-electric)
(3321) 951-3523
Lighting
fixtures (3331) 951-3523
Communications
and energy
wire and cable
(3381) 951-3523
Battery (3391) 951-3523
Noncurrent-
carrying
wiring devices
(3392) 951-3523
Concrete pipe
(3541) 951-7199
Glass products
(except glass
containers)
(3562) 951-7199
Chemical
fertilizer and
fertilizer
materials
(3721) 951-3510
Paint and
varnish (3751) 951-3510
______________________________________________________________________________
1998
The publication Canadian Cancer Statistics, 1998 will be released by the National Cancer Institute of Canada and the Canadian Cancer Society at 6:00 a.m. tomorow, Tuesday April 7.
For further information on this release, contact Judy Lee (613-951-1775), Health Statistics Division, Statistics Canada.
Cereals and oilseeds review, January 1998
Catalogue number 22-007-XPB
(Canada: $15/$149; outside Canada: US$15/US$149).
All prices exclude sales tax.