Canada’s labour market defied expectations in September, adding a net 46,700 jobs, with the unemployment rate dropping to 6.5 per cent, according to Statistics Canada data released on Friday.
Consensus in the financial industry was that 31,500 jobs would be added in September, according to a note from BMO Economics. BMO’s own call was for a more modest 20,000 jobs added.
The results follow an underwhelming August result in which a net 22,100 jobs were added, largely in part-time work. The unemployment rate rose 0.2 percentage points in August, to 6.6 per cent. Consensus prior to today’s announcement was for the unemployment rate to rise to 6.7 per cent.