The Globe and Mail reports in its Wednesday edition that Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. says the annual pace of housing starts in March declined 7 per cent compared with February. A Canadian press dispatch to The Globe quotes the national housing agency saying the seasonally adjusted annual rate of housing starts amounted to 242,195 units in March compared with 260,047 in February. When looking at year-over-year figures, actual housing starts in large urban centres were up 16 per cent to 17,052 units last month compared with 14,756 units in March, 2023. The year-over-year increase was driven by higher multiunit starts, up 19 per cent, and higher single-detached starts, up 2 per cent. Actual housing starts were 10 per cent higher in Toronto and 15 per cent higher in Vancouver year-over-year because of an increase in multiunit starts. The annual rate of rural starts was estimated at 21,452 units. TD Bank economist Rishi Sondhi said housing starts continue to trend "at a solid pace," even with the month-over-month decline in March, supported by elevated prices and firm preconstruction sales in the past. He cautioned, however, that further decreases to the number of starts are likely in the months to come.