Canadian housing starts decline in May, according to the latest data released by Canada’s national housing agency, CMHC. Multiple outlets report that total housing starts drop about 6% month over month in May. The Globe and Mail adds that CMHC also reports a six-month moving average for May that rises slightly by 0.5%, edging up to 258,010 units versus 256,646 units in April. The figures indicate that while the latest monthly pace weakens, the smoothed six-month trend remains relatively stable. Together, the reports present a picture of cooling new construction activity in the most recent month, alongside only a modest change in the longer-run average used to smooth volatility in month-to-month housing start data. The updates are part of CMHC’s ongoing monitoring of residential construction across Canada.