Canada’s labour force grew for second month in a row
Steve Randall
REP
Canada’s labour force grew in January with 34,500 jobs added to the economy, the second consecutive months of gains.
The figures from Statistics Canada show that all of the gains were full-time jobs and that they were spread across demographics. Most provinces saw little change while Quebec, Manitoba, and New Brunswick posted gains and BC saw a decrease.
The strong stats mean it is less likely that the Bank of Canada will be prompted to cut interest rates as an economic stimulus.
The additional employment in January contributed to gains totalling 268,000 (+1.4%) since January 2019.
The construction sector posted a 16,000 gain in jobs, just behind manufacturing (21,000) and ahead of agriculture (12,000). On an annual basis, construction and agriculture led the gains.
There was also an increase for the finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing industry, one of the leading components of the services-producing sector which saw little change overall. On an annual basis, the finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing industry added 69,400 jobs, a 5.9% increase.
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