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(The Canadian Press)

Lethbridge-Medicine Hat’s jobless rate at 5.2 percent in March

Apr 9, 2020 | 9:20 AM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – It’s no surprise that the economy has taken a hit from COVID-19.

Statistics Canada has released the latest unemployment numbers. Across the nation, the jobless rate rose from 5.6 percent in February to 7.8 percent in March.

In all, Stats Canada says the Canadian economy lost 1,011,000 jobs. That’s the worst single-month change over the last 40-plus years of comparable data.

ALBERTA

In Alberta, the unemployment rate was at 8.7 percent in March. That’s up from 7.2 percent in February.

For the Lethbridge-Medicine Hat region, the jobless rate was 5.2 percent, an increase from 4.6 percent in February.

Here’s how each economic region in the province’s numbers looked last month (February’s unemployment rate listed in parentheses):

· Red Deer: 10.2 percent (8.6)

· Calgary: 8.7 percent (7.2)

· Edmonton: 8.2 percent (7.7)

· Camrose-Drumheller: 7.5 percent (6.4)

· Banff-Jasper-Rocky Mountain House & Athabasca-Grande Prairie-Peace River: 7.1 percent (6.8)

· Wood Buffalo-Cold Lake: 6.3 percent (5.8)

· Lethbridge-medicine Hat: 5.2 percent (4.6)

For various age ranges, the unemployment rate in Alberta was 20.6 percent for male and female youths combined (15-24 years old) and 7.1 percent for adult men and women combined (25 years and up).

PROVINCES

Newfoundland and Labrador had the highest jobless rate across the country, at 11.7 percent.

Here’s how the rates broke down per province (February’s rates listed in parentheses):

· Newfoundland and Labrador: 11.7 percent (12.0)

· Prince Edward Island: 8.6 percent (8.0)

· Nova Scotia: 9.0 percent (7.8)

· New Brunswick: 8.8 percent (6.9)

· Quebec: 8.1 percent (4.5)

· Ontario: 7.6 percent (5.5)

· Manitoba: 6.4 percent (5.0)

· Saskatchewan: 7.3 percent (6.2)

· Alberta: 8.7 percent (7.2)

· British Columbia: 7.2 percent (5.0)