Canada adds 79,000 jobs in December, pushing jobless rate to lowest level since 1976

Canada added 79,000 jobs last month, blowing past expectations and pushing the jobless rate to its lowest level since 1976.

The jobless rate was pushed down two-tenths of a percentage point to 5.7 per cent, Statistics Canada reported Friday.

That’s the lowest on record since comparable data became available 42 years ago.

Economists polled by Bloomberg were expecting a flat showing, with about 2,000 jobs added. Every province added jobs during the month, but more than half of the new jobs came in Alberta and Quebec, with each adding more than 26,000 jobs.

“Quebec was probably the most compelling story throughout the year, with job growth running strong and the unemployment rate plunging to a record low [of 4.9 per cent],” Bank of Montreal economist Robert Kavcic noted in a report to clients. Read more…

Canada adds 79,000 jobs in December, pushing jobless rate to lowest level since 1976