08:59 AM EDT, 09/26/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Wednesday's Canadian quarterly population stats reveal only the slightest moderation from the recent fiery pace -- up 0.6% quarter on quarter and 3.0% year over year, said Bank of Montreal (BMO).

That translates into a 250,000 increase in the latest quarter and 1.21 million in the past year.

While a bit below the record rate in the second half of last year, this still marks only the seventh quarter in the past 50 years that Canada's population has grown by as much as a quarter of a million -- and all seven of those quarters were in the past three years, noted the bank.

Putting the most recent 250,000 increase in perspective, raw

housing starts were 66,000 in the same quarter, suggesting that

the housing market just tightened even further, stated BMO.

Up until recently, Canada was building one new dwelling for every two new people -- an equilibrium that largely held for more than 30 years, flying in the face of the myth of 'decades of

underbuilding'. However, in the past five years, contruction has been unable to keep pace with the rapid acceleration in population,

with the ratio falling to one start for every three new people, added the bank.

In the latest quarter, it fell to almost 1 to four. Not heading in the right direction for improved affordability but quite the opposite, pointed out BMO.