CREDIT: UNSPLASH/
PTTI EDU
Canada’s jobless rate rose to 6.4 per cent in June, the country’s statistics agency reported.

Canada's labour market continued to show widespread weakness in June, with new employment coming to a halt and the jobless rate rising to the highest in more than two years.

According to Statistics Canada’s June Labour Force Survey, the economy lost 1,400 jobs in June — only the third time in the past two years that employment recorded a monthly decline.

Still, the labour force continued growing at an elevated pace — with more than 40,000 new workers in June — driving up the unemployment rate by two ticks to 6.4 per cent. That’s the highest jobless rate since January 2022.

The number of Canadians who are unemployed rose by just over 40,000 to 1.4 million. Outside of the pandemic period, that’s the largest number of unemployed since 2016.

The data suggest the labour market downturn may be deepening as the nation’s economy copes with higher interest rates — weakness that could give the Bank of Canada scope to move ahead with more interest rate cuts.