The Globe and Mail reports in its Saturday edition that the pace of home construction rose in February as builders started on more apartments and condos, but the industry continues to struggle. A Canadian Press dispatch to The Globe says that Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. said Friday that housing starts jumped 14 per cent to 253,468 in February from a month earlier on a seasonally adjusted annual rate, which allows for better month-to-month comparison. When looking at year-over-year figures, February's housing starts were up 11 per cent, with the increase driven entirely by higher multiunit starts that increased 16 per cent, while single-detached starts were down 14 per cent. Adjusted starts in February were up 79 per cent in Vancouver and down 31 per cent in Montreal. Starts in the first quarter are expected to decrease from the fourth quarter last year, said TD economist Rishi Sondhi in a note. "In the first two months of Q1, housing starts are below their fourth quarter level, suggesting some potential downward pressure on residential investment growth in the first quarter," he said. "We think they'll head lower as the year progresses, with past weakness in home sales filtering through into home building."