MNI DATA IMPACT: Canada Jobs Up 106.5K; Unemp Rate Dn To 5.7%

By Courtney Tower

     OTTAWA (MNI) - The Canadian labor market surprised in April with a gain of

106,500 jobs, all in full-time work and the unemployment rate 

dropped to 5.7% from 5.8%, data released Friday by Statistics Canada showed.

     Analysts in an MNI survey had expected employment gains of just 4,000. The

unemployment rate dropped a notch although the participation rate increased to

65.9 from 65.7 the previous month.

     For the other day's release, a 2.1% rise in overall March building permits,

there was a concerning 1.5% decline in residential permits from the previous

month. The Bank of Canada has identified the housing market as one of its chief

Canadian economic concerns. Non-residential permits, on the other hand, were up

by a strong 7.9%. The drop in overall permit was led by a 1.4% decline in Ottawa

that was offset by gains in Toronto and Vancouver.

     Here are some of the key takeaways from the labor force report:

     - The average hourly wage for permanent employees, on a year-over-year

basis, was up 2.6% from 2.3% the month before. 

     - Adjusted to United States measurements of employment, the Canadian

unemployment rate in April was 4.7%, compared with 3.6% in the U.S., Statistics

Canada said.

     - The increased employment overall on the month saw a rise of 83,800 jobs

in the private sector and 22,700 in the public sector. There was no change among

the self-employed. Year-over-year, employment was up by 2.3% and total hours

worked were up 1.3%.

     - The strong employment results followed encouraging export data the day

before. However, building permit data for March released Friday showed weakness

in residential permits issued. Overall, recent data tend to support the present

Bank of Canada intention to leave the policy 1.75% interest rate as it is for

some time to come.

     - Employment gains were widespread across industries. Regionally, there

were increases in four provinces -- Ontario, Quebec, Alberta and Prince Edward

Island. There was a decline in New Brunswick and the remaining five provinces

showed little change. There were notable gains in wholesale and retail trade

(+32,400) and construction (+32,100) but only a modest increase in manufacturing

(+8,700).

--MNI Ottawa Bureau; tel: +1 202-371-2121; email: dcoffice@marketnews.com

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