(Adds data)
OTTAWA, March 10 (Reuters) - Canadian new home prices rose
in January, driven by higher costs in Vancouver and Toronto,
data from Statistics Canada showed on Thursday, highlighting the
ongoing strength of the country's hottest markets.
The national 0.1 percent price gain fell slightly short of
economists' expectations for an increase of 0.2 percent. The new
housing price index excludes apartments and condominiums, which
the government says are a particular cause for concern and which
account for one-third of new housing.
Vancouver was the top contributor with a 0.4 percent gain,
making for the city's eighth consecutive increase. Builders
cited new listing prices and market conditions as the main
reasons for January's gain.
The combined region of Toronto and Oshawa, where prices have
been increasing for the last year, saw a 0.2 percent rise with
builders pointing to similar factors as in Vancouver.
But prices were either lower or unchanged in two-thirds of
the metropolitan areas covered in the survey, including Calgary,
where prices were flat.
Canada's housing sector has accelerated in the years since
the financial crisis but a more trifurcated market has emerged
lately with energy-sensitive areas slowing, Toronto and
Vancouver gaining and the rest of the country plodding along.
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Graphic - Canada new housing prices http://link.reuters.com/nep62t
Graphic - Canada economic dashboard http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/15/sc-canada/index.html
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