Statistics
Canada announced on Friday that the number of employed people jumped by 37,300
m-o-m in January 2024 (or +0.2 per cent m-o-m) after an upwardly revised increase of 12,300 m-o-m (from +100) in the
previous month. This represented the strongest
gain in Canada’s employment since September 2023 (+63,800).
Economists had predicted
an advance of 15,000 m-o-m.
Meanwhile,
Canada's unemployment rate slipped to 5.7 per cent in January from an unrevised
5.8 per cent in the previous
month, below economists’ forecast of 5.9 per cent. This was
the lowest reading in three months and marked the first monthly decline in the
unemployment rate since December 2022.
According to
the report, full-time employment fell by
11,600 (or -0.1 per cent m-o-m) in January,
while part-time jobs surged by 48,900 (or +1.3 per cent m-o-m).
Over the month,
the number of public sector employees climbed by 47,600 (or +1.2 per cent m-o-m),
while the number of private sector employees increased by 7,400 (or +0.1 per cent m-o-m). At the same time, the
number of self-employed dropped by 17,700 (or -0.7 per cent m-o-m).
Sector-wise,
employment decreased in the goods-producing industry (-23,900, or -0.6 per cent
m-o-m) but rose in the services-producing business (+60,400, or +0.4 per cent
m-o-m).
The average hourly wages surged 5.3 per cent
y-o-y (or +CAD1.79) to CAD35.51 in January, decelerating from a 5.7 per cent y-o-y soar in December.