Canada: Building permits increase 6% in December following November's 2.1% growth

"Canadian municipalities issued $8.8 billion worth of building permits in December, up 6.0% from November and the fourth consecutive monthly increase," Statistics Canada reported on Wednesday.

Key takeaways from the press release

• The gain was largely due to higher construction intentions for multi-family dwellings and commercial buildings, with both components hitting record highs.
• The value of residential building permits was up 4.2% in December to $5.3 billion. 
• The value of building permits issued for non-residential structures rose 8.9% in December to $3.5 billion.