Investing.com - The number of new building permits issued in Canada rose significantly in June, fuelling optimism over the health of the country’s real estate sector, official data showed on Thursday.
In a report, Statistic Canada said the number of new building permits issued increased by a seasonally adjusted 13.5% in June, easily surpassing expectations for a decline of 1.8%.
May’s figure was revised to a gain of 15.4% from a previously reported increase of 13.8%.
The June increase was mainly due to higher construction intentions for institutional and industrial buildings in Quebec and commercial buildings in Alberta.
Following the release of the data, the Canadian dollar held on to losses against its U.S. counterpart, with USD/CAD rising 0.14% to trade at 1.0931.