Investment steady in ICI construction: OCS

A recent economic report by the Ontario Construction Secretariat (OCS) revealed that investment in ICI building construction grew 0.7 per cent from April to May and was up +5.9 per cent year-over-year. Increases were very mild across the board, with the highest percent change being +1.8 per cent month-over-month in the institutional sector.

Total ICI investment climbed +0.7 per cent month-over-month, according to the report, increasing from $2.51 billion in April to $2.53 billion in May.

The report noted that this is the second relatively mild month in a row for investment, as changes in March to April were of a similar magnitude.

In terms of commercial building investment, the report noted that it increased from $1.21 billion to $1.22 billion. However, year-to-date commercial investment still showed weakness at -5.6 per cent compared to the prior year, according to the report.

Industrial investment inched forward +0.7 per cent month-over-month from $652.9 million to $657.4 million but remained above last year’s level, noted the report.

According to the report, institutional investment experienced a larger increase, from $641.6 million to $653 million and was up +25.1 per cent year-over-year.

The report noted that overall, the data suggests that commercial sector building activity is still weak compared to last year. According to the report, this is correlated with the weakness in consumer spending. The report concluded by stating that industrial and institutional sectors continue a steady month-to-month trend upward at higher levels compared to last year.