Canada’s unemployment rate rose 0.2 percentage points to 6.7% in February amid continued signs of weakness in the labour market.
Statistics Canada said that overall employment declined by 84,000 positions (-0.4%) in February and that the employment rate fell 0.2 percentage points to 60.6%.
The February declines were broad-based with employment falling among youth aged 15 to 24 years old (down 47,000) and men in the core working age of 25 to 54 years old (down 41,000).
Employment was little changed for core-aged women and people aged 55 years and older.
Employment declines were recorded in services-producing industries (down 56,000 positions) and goods-producing industries (down 28,000).
Declines were also seen in wholesale and retail trade (down 18,000) and 'other services' such as personal and repair services (down 14,000).
Across the country, employment fell in Quebec (down 57,000), British Columbia (down 20,000), Saskatchewan (down 5,500), and Manitoba (down 4,000).
Newfoundland and Labrador was the only province that posted a net gain in jobs (up 2,100) during February. Employment was little changed in Canada’s other provinces, including Ontario.
Statistics Canada said that average hourly wages among employees rose 3.9%, or $1.42 to $37.56 on a year-over-year basis in February. That followed growth of 3.3% in January.
Canada’s labour market has exhibited signs of stress over the past year due largely to U.S. tariffs and volatility in energy markets.
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