UPDATE: N.B. only province in country to record a material job gain in August

**New Brunswick the only Canadian province to record a material job gain in August**

*Statistics Canada released new labour‑force data on Friday, showing New Brunswick added 2,400 jobs in August – the only province in the country to record a gain outside the margin of error. The province’s unemployment rate rose to 7.3 percent.*

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### National picture

– Canada’s economy shed 42,000 jobs in August, leaving the national unemployment rate unchanged at 6.4 percent.
– The largest job losses were in Quebec (‑19,000) and Ontario (‑18,000).
– Manufacturing was the only sector to post a net gain, adding about 22,000 jobs (a 1.2 percent month‑to‑month increase).
– Year‑over‑year, Canada added roughly 217,000 jobs, a 1 percent rise, with the biggest growth in health care and social assistance, information, culture and recreation, and transportation and warehousing.

### New Brunswick details

| Metric | August 2026 | July 2026 |
|——–|————-|———–|
| Unemployment rate | 7.3 % | 7.0 % |
| Net job change | +2,400 | – |
| Full‑time jobs added | +3,300 | – |
| Part‑time jobs lost | –900 | – |
| Labour force | +4,000 | – |
| Year‑over‑year jobs | +6,500 | – |
| Year‑over‑year full‑time jobs | +6,400 | – |
| Population change | +8,300 | – |

The province’s labour force grew by 4,000 people in August, outpacing the net job gain. Year‑over‑year, New Brunswick is now up 6,500 jobs, almost all of them full‑time. The unemployment rate fell slightly from 7.7 percent in August 2025.

### Sectoral performance

– **Services**: Retail trade, transportation and warehousing saw the largest gains.
– **Education** and **accommodation and food services** also experienced modest increases.
– **Construction** and **manufacturing** remained largely flat month‑to‑month and unchanged over the past year.

### Context and commentary

Economists noted that the August figures come after several months of growth. TD Bank senior economist Andrew Hencic said, “After a string of solid labour‑market reports August showed some give‑back… the unemployment rate remained unchanged on the month and is still 0.7 percentage points below last year’s print.”

CIBC senior economist Andrew Grantham added that the slowdown could be linked to U.S. tariffs affecting labour‑intensive sectors and heightened uncertainty that may influence hiring decisions.

### Provincial unemployment rates (August)

– Newfoundland and Labrador: 8.6 % (July 9.3 %)
– Prince Edward Island: 7.9 % (July 6.8 %)
– New Brunswick: 7.3 % (July 7.0 %)
– Ontario: 6.9 % (July 6.8 %)
– Alberta: 6.8 % (July 7.0 %)
– British Columbia: 6.5 % (July 6.2 %)
– Nova Scotia: 6.1 % (July 6

Article and image source: tj.news