Canada: Employment increased by 32,000 in March; unemployment rate unchanged at 5.8%

"Employment increased by 32,000 in March, driven by full-time gains. The unemployment rate was unchanged at 5.8%," Statistics Canada reported this Friday.

Key points:

   •  In the first quarter of 2018, employment edged down (-40,000 or -0.2%), as a result of a decrease in January. 

   •  Over the longer term, employment has been on an upward trend since the second half of 2016.

   •  On a year-over-year basis, total employment rose by 296,000 (+1.6%), with the number of full-time workers increasing by 335,000 (+2.3%). 

   •  Over the same period, total hours worked grew by 2.2%.