U.S. job creation outstrips expectations
Friday’s job creation figures south of the border have left little room for doubt regarding a future key rate hike from the Federal Reserve. Markets now assess the likelihood of such a scenario at 78%.
On our side of the border, the story was far less upbeat, with a net loss of 35,000 jobs in November, primarily part-time positions (-72,300 jobs). On the other hand, full-time job creation was substantially better than in the previous month (+36,600 vs. 9,000), sustained by the manufacturing sector, which saw its second best showing in this area in 13 years. The weak loonie therefore appears to be having a positive impact on this sector.
Late in the day on Friday, OPEC announced it would eliminate its production quota, which has been widely ignored for several months now. The combined effects of these developments have kept the loonie very close to its lowest level in the past ten years, which was reached on September 29.
