MNI BRIEF: Canada Unemployment Rate Falls To Lowest Since 1976

Unemployment in March fell to the lowest in Statistics Canada records back to 1976 as companies hired back service workers following restrictions during the omicron Covid wave. Wage gains pushed further above the central bank's target range in the last major data before Governor Tiff Macklem is expected to hike lending rates by 50bp.

The jobless rate fell to 5.3% from 5.5% in February, the agency said Friday, beating the prior low of 5.4% set in May 2019. Employment climbed another 72,500 following February's 336,600 surge. Economists predicted 38,000 jobs and a steady unemployment rate.

Hourly wages rose 3.4% from a year earlier, faster than February's 3.1% pace, and for permanent employees they climbed 3.7%. While long-term unemployment was 25% greater than a year earlier, a measure including people who stopped looking for work returned to pre-pandemic levels for the first time.