Canada: Building permits increased 4.7% to $8.2 billion in May

"The value of permits issued by Canadian municipalities increased 4.7% to $8.2 billion in May," Statistics Canada announced on Tuesday.

Key takeaways from the official publication

• This followed a 4.7% drop in April, the only month this year where municipalities reported a total value below the $8.0 billion mark.
• In the residential sector, municipalities issued $5.5 billion worth of permits in May, up 7.7% from April.
• This was the second-highest value on record, following the $5.7 billion worth of permits issued in October 2016.