Canada added 56,000 jobs last month, blowing past expectations

Canada's economy added 56,000jobs in February, and most were full time, Statistics Canada reported Friday.

Economists had been expecting a flat showing for the month, with a little over 1,000 new jobs. But the numbers blew past those expectations thanks to a surge of full-time jobs.

A total of 67,400 full-time positions were added during the month but 11,600 part-time jobs were shed, accounting for the 56,000 net total.

The jobless rate, meanwhile, stayed flat at 5.8 per cent despite the job surge because more people were looking for work, too.

Almost allthe new jobs came in Ontario, which added59,000 full-time positions.Everywhere else, the job market was relatively flat.

The loonie jumped about a half a cent when the numbers came out, to as high as 74.67 cents US at one point.

Karl Schamotta, chief market strategist for Cambridge Global Payments, is a bit worried about that job concentration in Ontario becauseof what's happening in theprovince's housing market.

"If our debt-funded, real estate-backed consumption thesis is correct, national employment conditions could worsen over the coming months," he said after the numbers came out.

Best two months for jobs since 2012

The strong February figurescomeon the heels of an even bigger gain of 66,800 jobs in January. That's the best two-month stretch for the job marketsince 2012.

U.S. jobs data also published Friday shows the American economy added just 20,000 jobs in February, making itthe first month in more than eight years that Canada has added more jobs in a month than the U.S. did.

The sudden surge in jobs in Canada comes asa bit of a head scratcher foreconomistsbecause other recent economic data, including gross domestic product and inflation, have been suggesting the economy is softening.

"The weak economic data that closed out 2018and soft momentum heading into this year has not yet had any impact on the jobs numbers," Toronto-Dominion Bank economist Brian DePratto said. "Labour markets didn't get the memo."

Wages inched higher, too. On average, pay packets have increased by 2.3 per cent in the year up to February, a rise from a 1.8 per cent annual pace the previous month.

Economist Alicia Macdonald, who's with the Conference Board of Canada, noted that after faltering through the latter part of 2018, "the most positive news for the month was the pickup in wage growth."

"While the Bank of Canada may consider this a positive report, we expect them to keep interest rates steady this year given the multitude of risks facing the economy," she said.

DePratto noted while it's good news Canadian workers arebeing paid more for every hour they work, they're not necessarily getting paid as much as they could bebecause they're working fewer hours. The total number of hours worked has now fallenthree months in a row, he noted, down by 0.7 per cent in February from January's level.

"Canadians are working fewer hours in aggregate," he said."This is something to watch, particularly given the implications for economic output."