Canadian construction intentions jump

The value of building permits Canadian municipalities issued in December rose 11.1 percent on a monthly basis to $6.8 billion, Statistics Canada said Tuesday. The agency said the construction intentions were the highest since June 2007. "In the residential sector, the value of permits rose 16.1 percent to $4.5 billion," StatsCan said. "In the non-residential sector, the value of permits grew 2.8 percent to $2.4 billion in December, following a 15.1 percent decline in November." Permits were issued for 19,015 new homes across the country in December, 11,560 of which were multi-family dwellings, the report said. Within the commercial sector, which includes such things as office buildings, warehouses and hotels, permit values rose 41 percent to $1.6 billion. However, the value of institutional permits for such things as schools and healthcare facilities declined 42.2 percent to $402 million in December, the report said.