The strong start to the year appears to have been a mirage for B.C.’s labour market.
The province lost 4,800 jobs in February after adding 23,400 jobs a month earlier, according to Friday data from Statistics Canada.
The unemployment rate remained unchanged at six per cent between January and February.
The province lost 10,200 part-time jobs and added 5,500 full-time jobs.
The tech sector saw all its January gains – 9,600 jobs at the time – wiped out with the loss of 11,700 jobs last month. Other notable losses hit construction (-5,200 jobs) and utilities (-2,600 jobs).
Gains were seen in health care (+4,900 jobs), and finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing (+3,400 jobs).
Canada added 1,100 jobs last month, while the national unemployment rate remained at 6.6 per cent between January and February.
“Overall, the figures are a bit weaker than expected—perhaps weather affected,” BMO chief economist Douglas Porter said in a note, referring to the national data. “For a change, there's little drama in today's Canadian jobs data, and the markets will now quickly turn back to the original trade war programming.”
