Industrial Construction in Canada Down 40%

While only 4 million square feet of new industrial projects are expected to go into construction this year, compared to 6.6 million square feet of actual construction last year and 6.8 million square feet in '07, the company forecasts the total will jump to 6 million square feet next year and 8 million square feet two years from now.

CanaData says builders in Canada are expected to break ground on 50 million square feet of non-residential construction this year,. The projection is down 7.5% from the 54 million-square-foot estimate given in March and down 31% from the actual 72.1 million square feet of construction in 2008. The most recent cyclical peak was 92.1 million square feet in '07. The company attributes the decline to weak product demand, falling corporate profits and tight credit.