Canada: Employment report was consistent with a gradual re-opening of the economy – NFB

The net change in employment in Canada in June was positive in near a million, surpassing expectations. Jocelyn Paquet and Kyle Dahms, analysts at the National Bank of Canada, point out the labour market extended the recovery into June, but it still has a long way to go. 

Key Quotes:

“Most analysts expected the job market to extend its gains in June and the LFS report did not disappoint. Nearly a million jobs were created in the month, by far the largest improvement observed in data going back to 1976.”

“Hourly earnings dropped precipitously from May’s level but this was due to the return to work of thousands of low-paid workers, notably in the retail and accommodation/food services sectors.”

“The gains recorded in the past two months are only a fraction of the 3.0 million jobs lost in March and April.”

“Total employment remains down 9.2% from its peak.”

“Hours worked may have been up 9.8% in the month, but they were still tracking a 54.9% annualized drop in the second quarter as a whole.”

“Looking forward, we expect the pace of job creation to slow as some industries will likely continue to operate below capacity for some time.”