The labour market rode a surprisingly strong wave of new jobs last month as the country churned out 77,000 full-time positions, Statistics Canada said Friday.

Overall, 54,400 jobs were added in May after accounting for declines in other categories including part-time work, the latest labour force survey says.

The agency found that the national unemployment rate edged up to 6.6 per cent, a rise of 0.1 of a percentage point, as more people entered the job market in search of work.

The fresh numbers added to several positive labour-market gains since the middle of 2016 and the report says the latest monthly number means overall employment was 1.8 per cent higher compared to a year earlier.

By province, the agency says Ontario, British Columbia and Quebec saw the biggest job gains last month.

Quebec’s unemployment rate dropped 0.6 percentage points to six per cent – its lowest level since Statistics Canada started collecting the data in 1976.

A consensus of economists had expected job gains of 11,000 last month and for the unemployment rate to move up to 6.6 per cent, according to Thomson Reuters.

Youth employment gave the overall number a boost as 38,200 more young people found full-time work last month. The unemployment rate for youth slipped 0.3 percentage points to 12 per cent last month as more young people participated in the job market.

By industry, the services sectors gained 31,300 jobs last month while factories added 23,300 positions, including 25,300 more in manufacturing. In services, there was a gain of 25,900 jobs in the professional, scientific and technical services category.

A closer look at the data also shows healthy gains in some of the survey’s more-desirable categories – with 59,400 new jobs created in the private sector and 68,500 new paid employee positions.

The agency said hourly wages for all employees grew 1.3 per cent year-over-year last month, an increase over the April’s all-time low of 0.7 per cent. The number of hours worked rose 0.7 per cent, the report said.

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