The job numbers for June are out. Employment across the country increased by 83,000 in June and the unemployment rate fell by 0.1 percentage points to 6.9 per cent.

Economists had expected no job gains for the month and that the jobless rate would rise to 7.1 per cent.

Employment increased in Alberta, Quebec, Ontario and Manitoba while it declined in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador. The rate in NL in June was 9.9 per cent, up from 8.6 in May.

Employment in wholesale and retail trade increased across Canada by 34,000 in June; employment also rose in health care and social assistance. Even the manufacturing sector, which has faced job losses in recent months amid Canada’s tariff dispute with the United States, saw a gain of 10,000 positions in June.

Over one in five unemployed people had been searching for work for 27 weeks or more in June, an increase from 17.7 per cent in June 2024