BC non-residential building activity

Non-residential building activity in B.C. declined in the first quarter of 2008 from the last quarter of 2007, Statistics Canada reported on Monday.

And B.C.'s dip, some $31 million to $1.42 billion from $1.45 billion in the last quarter, was the biggest drop among the provinces, which on balance, saw non-residential building increase.

The reason, the statistical agency said, was that large industrial and institutional projects begun in 2006 and early 2007 are reaching completion.

"The industry expects this kind of ebb and flow," Philip Hochstein, president of the Independent Contractors and Business Association of B.C., said in a news release.

He added that Monday's report from Statistics Canada represented "just a snapshot of a strong construction market."

And while non-residential construction dipped during the start of this year, the pace is still ahead of the $1.41 billion invested during the first three months of 2007.

Hochstein said buildings are expecting to start on a number of projects, both public and private sector, that are still in the planning stages.

The Vancouver Regional Construction Association, in a news release, said that while some areas of non-residential building might have seen a dip, investment in commercial buildings across the Lower Mainland hit a record $620.5 million in the first quarter of 2008.

And the total investment in non-residential construction, while down from the last quarter, remains 6.5 per cent above the first quarter of 2007 at $836.2 million.

"Strong growth in the commercial sector indicates strength in private investment and confidence in the economy," says Keith Sashaw, Vancouver Regional Construction Association president. "We anticipate this sector to set more record highs this year and next."

Across Canada, major building activity in Alberta and Ontario lifted investment in non-residential construction 1.6 per cent to $10.3 billion in the first three months of the year, Statistics Canada reported.

Investment increased in all three segments of the sector compared with the previous three months, representing the 20th-consecutive quarterly gain.

The biggest provincial increase occurred in Alberta, with investment rising 5.1 per cent to $2.5 billion from the fourth quarter of 2007. In Ontario, it rose 3.1 per cent to $3.8 billion.

The federal agency credited low office vacancy rates, a vigorous retail sector and strong corporate profits for the gains.

Of 34 consensus metropolitan areas, 15 registered quarterly growth, with the biggest gains in Toronto, where investment rose 4.2 per cent to $1.9 billion.

(Source: Vancouver Sun)