In a potential sign of a strengthening economy, the number of people receiving employment insurance in Saskatchewan has declined over the past year.

Between May 2018 and May 2019, Saskatchewan saw a 10 per cent decrease in the number of people on EI, according to Statistics Canada.

The May year-to-year decrease is the biggest of all provinces. Across Canada, the comparable figure is 4.3 per cent.

Across Canada, there were 19,600 fewer people on EI , while in Saskatchewan, the figure was 1,730 fewer people getting benefits.

There was a total of 15,200 Saskatchewan people on EI in May.

StatsCan said most of the decline comes from the province's two most populous areas of Regina and Saskatoon. The Regina area saw a 2.7 per cent decrease while the Saskatoon area declined by 4.5 per cent.

Saskatchewan's employment rose by 2.7 per cent overall and the unemployment rate dropped to 5.2 per cent.