Canada Housing Starts Jump 7.3% In September From August

TORONTO (Dow Jones)--Canadian housing starts rose 7.3% to an annual rate of 205,900 in September, mainly due to an increase in multiple starts, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. said Tuesday.

Results were well ahead of the 189,000 rate analysts surveyed by Dow Jones had projected for the month.

The September rate was up from a revised 191,900 units in July.

CMHC said the pickup in September housing starts reflects an increase in multiple starts in the Atlantic region, Quebec and in British Columbia, but noted that multiples "are expected to move back towards levels consistent with demographic fundamentals in the near term."

CIBC World Markets agreed, saying in a note that multiple starts are "widely expected to scale down in the months ahead."

However, CIBC said the data suggest residential construction could be a positive for GDP in the third quarter "as homebuilding continues to garner support from a low rate environment, and a robust multiples market."

In September, urban starts rose 8% to 185,900. Multiple urban starts were up 14.2%, while urban single starts were down 1.5%.

Last month's seasonally adjusted annual rate of urban starts jumped 47% in the Atlantic region, 32% in Quebec and 18.6% in British Columbia, while urban starts fell by 3.5% in Ontario and 12.1% in the Prairie region.

Rural starts were estimated at 20,000 units in September.