Housing starts rise slightly in Canada

OTTAWA, April 8 (UPI) -- Housing starts in Canada rose 2.7 percent in March, the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corp. said Friday.

Housing starts increased from 183,700 on a seasonally adjusted annual rate in February to 188,800, CMHC said.

Regional figures headed in opposite directions.

In British Columbia, urban housing starts fell 23.4 percent. In Ontario, urban housing starts increased by 11.5 percent. In Quebec, urban starts, which make up the vast majority of projects, rose by 8.6 percent.

There were 163,500 urban housing projects started and 25,300 rural projects, CMHC said.