The Canadian economy has surpassed the projections of economists with an unexpected gain of 153,000 jobs in January of 2023.
The number of jobs gained in January was ten times more than what economists had projected for Canada.
Interestingly, Statistics Canada, which made this disclosure this Friday, February 10, noted that most of the January jobs — over 120,000 — were recorded among full-time employment. In addition, most of the jobs were in the private sector, which gained 132,000 new places.
In December, the Canadian job market had gained more than 100,000 jobs, although the agency later revised that to 69,000, bringing the total figure for December and January to over 220,000 new jobs.
Of the 13 provinces and territories, only Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick did not add jobs, but Ontario and Quebec made the most gains.
Furthermore, most of the job gains were recorded among people aged 25 to 54 across several sectors, with wholesale and retail trade leading the chart.
The Canadian labour market has been rising consecutively in the past five months, gaining a total of 326,000 jobs. Analysts fear that this growth in the job market may entice the Bank of Canada to resume its interest rate hikes.
However, this did not stop the Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index from having a seesaw movement all through the day, indicating that the index was heading for a loss for the week.
As the economy continues to beat projections, investors have continued to be cautious in their investment preferences. One way they have done this is by diversifying their investment in different sectors. This week our readers have shown more interest in the news concerning the technology, industrial, and finance sectors. Below are the stories.
Nextech AR (CSE:NTAR) secures key enterprise 3D model deal with S&P 500 retailer
Nextech AR Solutions (NTAR) secured the patronage of another major enterprise customer.
The company was chosen as a supplier for a top 10 e-commerce retailer in the United States, which is in line with the company’s rapid expansion and growth.
This latest contract win is for a significant number of 3D models to be delivered in 2023.
Nextech CEO Evan Gappelberg spoke with Coreena Robertson about the news.
Nextech Ar Solutions Corp. was up 7.79 per cent within the week, trading at $0.83 at 12:39 p.m. EST.
Mullen Group (TSX:MTL) reports record 2022 financial results
Mullen Group (MTL) reported its financial and operating results for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2022.
The company earned record revenue of $2.0 billion, up 35.3 per cent due to incremental acquisition revenue, increases in fuel surcharge revenue and general rate increases negotiated early in the year.
The company also saw record adjusted operating income before depreciation and amortization (OIBDA) of $329.9 million, up 39.6 per cent thanks to growth from existing business units and from incremental adjusted OIBDA from acquisitions.
Net income also hit a record of $158.6 million, up 119.1 per cent, and earnings per share of $1.70, up 126.7 per cent.
Mullen Group’s Senior Accounting Officer Carson Urlacher met with Coreena Robertson to discuss the results.
Mullen Group Ltd. (MTL) was down 3.72 per cent within the last five days, trading at $13.72 at 12:37 p.m. ET.
Propel Holdings (TSX:PRL) launches Fora Credit
Propel (PRL) launched Fora Credit, an online credit solution for underserved Canadians.
Fora uses Propel’s scalable technology and AI capabilities to enable online applications for personal lines of credit up to C$10,000 with no origination fees, annual fees, late fees or pre-payment penalties.
The solution is intended to improve the lives of the nearly 25 per cent of Canadians that are either unserved or underserved in the credit market, according to a TransUnion study.
To support its entrance into the Canadian market, Propel has secured a revolving credit facility with an initial capacity of $26 million from CWB Maxium Financial (part of the Canadian Western Bank Financial Group) and Bastion Management.
CEO Clive Kinross spoke with Coreena Robertson about the news.
Propel Holdings Inc. (PRL) was up 6.21 per cent within the week, trading at $7.70 at 11:35 a.m. ET.
