The unemployment rate in Canada is at record lows

💥The unemployment rate in Canada is at record lows💥

Another week of volatile markets ended with equities and bonds declining in North America, mainly after the minutes of the last US central bank meeting and officials underlining their determination to shrink the Fed’s balance sheet, which was highly expanded during the pandemic. US S&P 500 and Nasdaq declined 1.27% and 3.86%, respectively, while Canada’s S&P/TSX composite was just down 0.36%. European markets mostly fell, with Euro Stoxx 50 dropping 1.54%.

The bonds also declined as US Treasury yields climbed, with the US 10-year hitting 2.7%, the level not seen since 2019. Central banks are expected to raise interest rates between one to two percent in Canada and the US by yearend

Today, Canada’s job market report showed the economy had added 70,000 new jobs in March, setting the unemployment rate at 5.3%, the lowest level seen since 1976. Decent economic data and robust job market reports are solid reasons for central banks to increase interest rates to combat the hot inflation.

 Oil prices came off their recent highs to below 100 but remain elevated, with West Texas Intermediate at 97.85 a barrel. After a couple of weeks of recovery, cryptos had a sharp decline this week, with Bitcoin and Ethereum losing 7.38% and 5.76%, respectively.