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Canada’s unemployment rate remained steady at 6.4 per cent in July, new data from Statistics Canada show.
In British Columbia, meanwhile, the jobless rate increased from 5.2 per cent in June to 5.5 per cent last month.
StatCan said the national economy lost 2,800 jobs in July.
There were 20.5 million people employed across the country last month.
The jobless rate has increased by 0.9 percentage points over the last year.
Students and recent immigrants are among the groups most affected by the weakening job market, according to the agency.
The private sector lost 42,000 jobs in July, while the public sector gained 41,000.
There were 205,000 more public sector jobs in July 2024 compared with July 2023, according to StatCan.
The figures come amid a period of relatively high interest rates, with the Bank of Canada’s key rate at 4.5 per cent. The central bank expressed concerns about the labour market when it released its rate decision late last month.
Inflation, meanwhile, is also relatively high at 2.7 per cent.
The next interest rate announcement is due on Sept. 4.