The Canadian economy added 150,000 net new jobs in January, handily beating the expectations of economists.
January’s job gains were 10 times greater than the 15,000 that had been expected among economists surveyed by Bloomberg Markets.
The strong report enabled Canada’s unemployment rate to hold steady near a record low of 5%, according to Statistics Canada.
January marked the fifth consecutive month of job increases in Canada, bringing the total number of new jobs created since last September to 326,000.
Perhaps most confounding to economists is the fact that the rate of job growth in Canada is accelerating. January’s job growth was more than double the pace seen in December, which saw about 70,000 new jobs created.
Canada’s labour force participation rate during January increased 0.3 percentage points to 65.7% as the labour force grew by 153,000, or 0.7%.
Employment increased in five Canadian provinces, including Ontario, Quebec, and Alberta, and was up in six industries, led by wholesale and retail trade.
The numbers suggest that Canada’s labour market is running hot despite the fact that interest rates have been raised to 4.50%, the highest level in more than a decade.
The strong jobs market also raises questions as to whether the Bank of Canada is done lifting interest rates as it indicated last month.
At its January meeting, Canada’s central bank said it plans to hold interest rates at current levels but could hike further if evidence emerges that Canada’s economy is running full tilt.
The Canadian dollar rallied about 0.5% to $1.3381 per U.S. dollar immediately following the January jobs report.
