Canada’s unemployment rate jumps to 6.8% in November

The November jobs figures are the final major economic data release before the Bank of Canada makes its last interest rate decision of the year on Dec. 11.

Canadian employers collectively added some 51,000 jobs in November, but the unemployment rate jumped as more people looked for work, according to Statistics Canada.

Canada’s unemployment rate now stands at 6.8 per cent, up 0.3 percentage points from October. The jobless rate now stands at its highest levels since January 2017, outside the COVID-19 pandemic years.

Some 87,000 people were newly unemployed in November, including all those looking for work or on a temporary layoff.

The November jobs figures are the final major economic data release before the Bank of Canada makes its last interest rate decision of the year on Dec. 11.

More to come…