Building permits value drops in May

OTTAWA - The total value of building permits issued by Canadian municipalities in May fell 14.5 per cent to $6.7 billion, following two months of double-digit gains, Statistics Canada said Tuesday. Economists had expected a drop of five per cent, according to Thomson Reuters. Statistics Canada said the value of residential permits issued in May dropped 13.5 per cent to $3.9 billion after three consecutive monthly increases. The value of multi-family home permits fell 22.9 per cent to $1.6 billion in May due to a drop in every province and territory, except British Columbia, New Brunswick and Nunavut. Contractors took out $2.3 billion worth of building permits for single-family homes in May, down 5.5 per cent.