Posted on: 09-Dec-2009 12:00AM

The seasonally adjusted annual rate of housing starts reached its highest level of the year in November. Housing starts are seen as a good proxy for the overall economy as money spent on housing often precedes spending in other sectors of the broader economy.
"The improvement in housing starts continued in November," CMHC economist Bob Dugan said. "Despite a small decline in November's multiple home construction, overall starts numbers were up due to a solid increase in singles starts.
The yearly high in November is reason for optimism as Canadian residential construction activity continues to rebound from the depths of recession and more broadly, the Canadian construction industry is looking like a source of strength in the coming year.