ISTANBUL 

Housing starts in Canada plummeted 9% in June, compared to the previous month, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) figures released Tuesday.

Housing starts stood at 241,672 units in June, down from 264,929 units in May, the CMHC said in a statement.

The market estimate for the figure was to come in at around 255,000.

In May 2023, the country saw housing starts plummet 23% to 202,494 units – the lowest in more than three years.

CMHC Chief Economist Bob Dugan said in a statement that the higher interest rate environment appears to have caught up with some of Canada’s major centers as lower multi-unit starts, particularly in Vancouver and Toronto.

"While strong starts growth in June and the first half 2024 in Calgary, Edmonton, and Montréal mitigated some of these decreases, we expect continued downward starts pressure across Canada throughout 2024," he added.

Annually, total actual housing starts in June were significantly lower in two of Canada’s three major cities compared to the same month of last year, with Toronto and Vancouver down 60% and 55%, respectively, as both cities recorded significant declines in multi-unit construction, said the CMHC.

Montréal, on the other hand, was up significantly at 226% year-on-year, due to much higher multi-unit activity, it added.