Canada's labor market continued to cool in June, with employment tad higher, thanks to private-sector job gains more than offsetting declines among public-sector workers, said the country's statistical agency in its Labour Force Survey Friday.
Canada gained 18,000 jobs, or 0.1% month over month, in June, while the unemployment rate edged down to 6.5% from 6.6%, according to Statistics Canada.
The job increases were roughly in line with a 10,000 consensus rise provided by MUFG before the release of the LFS. The unemployment rate was expected to stay at 6.6% in the consensus.
Private-sector employment increased by 32,000, or 0.2% monthly, which offset a 31,000 decline, or 0.7% month over month, in public-sector jobs, added StatsCan. Sector performance was mixed, led by 15,000 gains in accommodation and food services, while manufacturing fell by 17,000.
Average hourly wages among employees were up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis in June, said the Ottawa-based agency.
The monthly LFS estimates are based on a sample and are therefore subject to sampling variability. As a result, monthly estimates will show more variability than trends observed over longer time periods. This analysis focuses on differences between estimates that are statistically significant at the 68% confidence level.
LFS estimates at the Canada level don't include the territories. The LFS estimates are the first in a series of labor market indicators released by StatsCan, which includes indicators from programs such as the Survey of Employment, Payrolls and Hours (SEPH); Employment Insurance Statistics; and the Job Vacancy and Wage Survey.