- Employment fell by 1,800 in October
- Job gains still averaging 35,600 year-to-date
- Unemployment rate steady at 5.5%
After impressive job gains in August and September, there was limited give-back in October with the overall headcount down only slightly. Employment was bolstered by election-related hiring (public administration up 20,000) but held back by losses in construction and manufacturing (the latter apparently not driven by temporary auto sector layoffs). The election hiring will be retraced in November, while the decline in goods-producing sectors bears watching. With or without those swings, it’s the services sector that has driven Canada’s robust job growth this year.
Last week, the BoC emphasized that its future policy decisions will depend on resilience of the Canadian economy, particularly in consumer spending and housing. A healthy labour market is key to both and there is little sign of deterioration in today’s report with the unemployment rate remaining low and wage growth continuing at a strong pace.
