By Paul Vieira
OTTAWA--Canadian new house prices rose at their slowest pace in five months in December, although analysts reckon momentum will carry forward into 2021 as pandemic-related restrictions ease.
New house prices in Canada climbed 0.3% in December, Statistics Canada said Thursday. In the previous month, new house prices increased 0.6%.
From a year ago, new house prices jumped 4.6%, which matches the previous month's advance. The 4.6% gain over 12-months represents the biggest one-year advance since April 2008.
For 2020 as a whole, new house prices rose 2.1% from the previous year, after a 0.1% drop in 2019. The Canadian economy recorded its sharpest and swiftest decline in memory in 2020. However, the data agency said, demand for larger living spaces grew as Canadians adjusted to a work-from-home routine which Statistics Canada added shows no sign of abating in 2021. Communities outside of major cities recorded some of the biggest gains in the year.
Also supporting price gains were record-low interest rates and a surge in lumber prices.
For 2021, Statistics Canada said, "demand for housing will continue to grow, driven by currently low borrowing costs as well as the vaccine rollout, which will bring renewed optimism and contribute to the gradual reopening of the economy."
Write to Paul Vieira at paul.vieira@wsj.com
Corrections and Amplifications
This article was corrected at 9:18 a.m. ET to clarify that demand for larger living spaces grew as Canadians adjusted to a work-from-home routine which the data agency added shows no sign of abating in 2021. A previous version omitted the word "grew."
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
01-21-21 0909ET
