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Employment boom foreseen2007, Year of the Job?Better-than-expected job numbers for November have analysts predicting that 2006 could be the best year for job creation in four years. |
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 [ 2006-12-02 ] |
More people went looking for work in November and helped push the unemployment rate up a tenth of a percentage point to 6.3%, despite the creation of 22,000 new part-time jobs.
The additional jobs were mainly in the goods-producing sector, which was seen as good news.
The job creation numbers had some economists predicting a rosier fourth quarter than many had previously expected, especially given lacklustre third-quarter GDP numbers reported Thursday.
"I think people were getting worried about the fact that we might see that kind of deceleration extend into the fourth quarter," said Carolyn Kwan, senior financial markets economist at Scotiabank.
Good rebound
"But really, with today's job numbers, it really, I think, confirms that fact that we will get some kind of good rebound in the fourth quarter, given that we had 50,000 jobs created in October as well as another 22,000 in November."
Dawn Desjardins, senior economist with Royal Bank, said the November numbers suggest job creation this year will be the strongest since 2002.
"With the steady creation of full-time jobs and wage gains after taking account for inflation, labour market conditions will continue to support consumer spending in the fourth quarter," she added.
Sal Gautieri of the Bank of Montreal said the increase in the number of job-seekers bodes well.
"The jump in the workforce suggests that the tightness in labour markets is attracting new workers, which has positive implications for Canada's inflation outlook," he said.
Statistics Canada says the economy has created 89,000 jobs since August.
New jobs
Ontario produced 19,000 new jobs last month, but unemployment was unchanged at 6.4%. In Ottawa, the rate went from 5.2% to 5.6%.
The Ontario numbers were welcomed by analysts, although they pointed out Central Canada has been hit by losses in manufacturing.
"You still have the idea that the strong dollar and U.S. weakness is wearing on our manufacturers," said Andrew Gretzinger, senior economic analyst at MFC Global Investment Management in Toronto. "Employment growth there has lagged the national average."
Gautieri had a different read on the Ontario data, saying the November upturn in manufacturing jobs "suggests, albeit tentatively, that the drag on the export sector from the strong Canadian dollar might be waning."
Economists say the Bank of Canada is likely to hold steady on interest rates in light of the job numbers, even though inflation remains a concern. The bank issues its next monetary policy decision on Tuesday.
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