ISTANBUL

Building permits in Canada soared 20.5% in April to $12.8 billion, the country's statistical authority said on Tuesday.

The market expectation for the figure was to show a 4.9% increase.

The figure for March was revised to a drop of 12.3% from one of 11.7%.

"Construction intentions in the residential sector increased 21.0% to $8.0 billion and the non-residential sector rose 19.6% to $4.8 billion, with growth observed in all components," Statistics Canada said in a statement.

"On a constant dollar basis, the total monthly value of building permits grew 20.7% in April, to the highest level since June 2023," it added.

British Columbia, the country's westernmost province, saw a record-high monthly total value of building permits with $3.1 billion, and it led the monthly increases in both residential and non-residential sectors in the country, the agency said.

The value of residential building permits rose 21% to reach $8 billion in April, while the value of non-residential permits rose 19.6% to $4.8 billion.