Canada adds 48,300 jobs in January vs expected loss of 10,000 jobs Loonie pops
Investing.com - Canada's unemployment rate unexpectedly dropped in January, bolstering optimism over the Canadian economy, according to official data released on Friday.
Specifically, the Statistics Canada report showed that the Canadian unemployment rate fell to 6.8% in January. Experts had expected the reading to remain unchanged at 6.9%.
The Canadian economy created 43,800 jobs last month, compared to the consensus estimate for the destruction of 5,000 posts and after the creation of 46,100 jobs in December, that was revised from an initial reading of 53,700.
The participation rate inched up to 65.9% in January, from the prior 65.8
Following the report, which was released simultaneously with U.S. import and export prices, USD/CAD traded at 1.3082, compared to 1.3133 prior to the data.
Full-time positions increased by 15,800. Although that was outpaced by a 32,400 increase in part-time work, economists were encouraged by the decline in the unemployment rate to 6.8 per cent, even as the participation rate edged up.
Canada saw strong jobs growth in the second half of 2016. While much of that came from part-time work, suggesting a deterioration in job quality, economists expect full-time work to be stronger this year.
Read more by Soren K.Group
