Employment rose strongly for the........>

CANADA DATA: Employment rose strongly for the second month, +55.9K in February

versus +66.8K in January, all in full-time work. The unemployment rate stayed at

5.8% as the numbers of Canadians looking for work held nearly steady with a

participation rate of 65.8 versus 65.6 the previous month. Full-time employment

rose by 67.4K in February while part-time employment declined by -11.6K.

- Total employment now is up 369,000 jobs on the year or 2.0%. Full-time work

over the 12 months to February rose by 266,000 and part-time by 103,000. The

Bank of Canada this week, disappointed with low-growth data on business

investment, exports and consumer spending, pointed to the strong labor market

and rising worker wages as somewhat offsetting elements in the economy. The BOC

predicted what it called a "detour" in growth in the first half of this year but

a pickup late in the year due to the jobs market and higher wages.