The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. (CMHC) reported on Tuesday the seasonally adjusted annual rate of housing starts was at 275,916 units in May, up 3.2 percent from a downwardly revised 267,449 units in April (originally 268,631 units).

Economists had forecast an annual pace of 270,000 for May.

According to the report, urban starts rose by 1.8 percent m-o-m last month to 254,647 units, as multiple urban starts surged by 10.9 percent m-o-m to 190,530 units, while single-detached urban starts tumbled 18.0 percent m-o-m 64,117 units. At the same time, rural starts were estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 21,269 units.