Canada’s unemployment rate rose to 6.7 per cent in October from 6.5 per cent in September, as more people searched for work and overall employment changed little, Statistics Canada reported November 6.

The economy recorded a net loss of 4,700 jobs. The Canadian Press reported that economists surveyed by Reuters had expected a gain of 13,600, following cumulative losses of about 110,000 jobs in August and September.

Private-sector employment fell by 53,000 positions, its first monthly decline since February, while public-sector employment increased by 50,000, according to the Canadian Press account of the release. Despite those monthly movements, private-sector employment remained higher than a year earlier and public-sector employment remained lower.

Young workers faced a sharper increase in unemployment. The rate for people aged 15 to 24 climbed 0.7 percentage points to 13.7 per cent as employment edged down and more young people sought work.

Wholesale and retail trade lost 29,000 jobs, the Canadian Press reported. Construction and education posted gains. Annual growth in average hourly wages slowed to 2.2 per cent from September’s 2.3 per cent.

Statistics Canada’s provincial figures showed Ontario’s unemployment rate rising 0.3 percentage points to 7.3 per cent, with employment little changed for a third consecutive month. Alberta lost about 24,000 jobs and its unemployment rate climbed 0.9 points to 7.3 per cent. British Columbia added about 12,000 jobs.

The federal agency also reported that 23.7 per cent of unemployed people had been searching continuously for at least 27 weeks, compared with 21.5 per cent a year earlier.

Separate questions about household finances found that 29.7 per cent of Canadians aged 15 and older lived in households struggling to meet necessary expenses, up from 27.7 per cent a year earlier. Among the 15 largest metropolitan areas, the highest shares were in Oshawa, Windsor and Hamilton; Hamilton’s figure was 35.9 per cent.

The newly released survey measures labour-market conditions during October 11–17, rather than conditions on publication day.

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