Investing.com - The number of employed people in Canada rose more-than-expected in March, while the country’s jobless rate dropped unexpectedly, official data showed on Thursday.
In a report, Statistic Canada said the number of employed people rose by a seasonally adjusted 82,300 in March, blowing past expectations for an increase of 10,000.
In February, the number of employed people fell by an unrevised 2,800.
Compared with 12 months earlier, employment was up 1.1% or 197,000. Almost all of this growth was in full-time employment, up 181,000, while part-time employment edged up.
The report showed that Canada’s unemployment rate fell to 7.2% in March from 7.4% in February. Analysts had expected the jobless rate to climb to 8.0% last month.
Following the release of the data, the Canadian dollar turned higher against its U.S. counterpart, with USD/CAD shedding 0.26% to trade at 0.9936.
In a report, Statistic Canada said the number of employed people rose by a seasonally adjusted 82,300 in March, blowing past expectations for an increase of 10,000.
In February, the number of employed people fell by an unrevised 2,800.
Compared with 12 months earlier, employment was up 1.1% or 197,000. Almost all of this growth was in full-time employment, up 181,000, while part-time employment edged up.
The report showed that Canada’s unemployment rate fell to 7.2% in March from 7.4% in February. Analysts had expected the jobless rate to climb to 8.0% last month.
Following the release of the data, the Canadian dollar turned higher against its U.S. counterpart, with USD/CAD shedding 0.26% to trade at 0.9936.