New home prices rise in Canada

New home prices in Canada rose 0.2 percent January to February and have risen 2.1 percent over 12 months, Statistics Canada said Thursday. Price gains varied across the country. The largest month-over-month gain was in Regina, with prices up 1.4 percent. In Calgary, prices rose 1 percent from January. In Halifax, prices rose 0.9 percent. In Regina, builders reported higher operating costs and a shortage of developed land. In Halifax, builders said material costs, labor and land prices were adding to the price of a new home. On a 12-month basis, Winnipeg posted the largest gains with prices up 5.5 percent from February 2012. In Calgary, prices rose 4.3 percent over 12 months. In Halifax, over 12 months, prices were up 2.7 percent in February. The agency's new home price index for February came in at 109.3, up from 109.1 in January. The index is a comparison to the average index reading for 2007, which was assigned a value of 100.