ISTANBUL

Canada's payroll employment fell 22,700, or 0.1%, in April from the previous month, the country's statistical agency said Thursday.

The decline followed three consecutive monthly increases from January to March, Statistics Canada said in a statement.

The figure, which shows the number of employees receiving pay and benefits from their employers, follows an increase of 51,400, or 0.3%, seen in March.

In April, monthly payroll employment declines were recorded in eight out of 20 sectors, led by manufacturing with a decrease of 6,000, or 0.4%, said the agency.

Job vacancies, meanwhile, fell 32,000, or 5.3%, to 575,400 in April, marking the third consecutive monthly drop, and the lowest level since January 2021.

Annually, total job vacancies in April were down by 223,400, or 28%, compared to the same month of last year.

Average weekly earnings, on the other hand, were little changed in April for a third consecutive month, according to Statistics Canada.

Annually, however, they were up 3.7% in April from the same month last year.