Released on April 8, 2004
Saskatchewan held its own on the job front in March with the number of people employed up slightly over March of last year.Statistics Canada figures released today show 477,300 people working in Saskatchewan in March (seasonally unadjusted figures), up from 477,100 in March 2003. The March 2004 figure was the second-highest March on record for employment in Saskatchewan and represented the second straight month of job increases.
"That's two consecutive months of movement in the right direction, and that's a good way to start a new year," Industry and Resources Minister Eric Cline said. "With summer coming up and some positive movement in key sectors such as agriculture our economy may be positioned to challenge last year's employmen numbers
Cline said the growth can be characterized as steady, if not spectacular. "We're working our way through some challenges in agriculture and other sectors, and it's particularly encouraging to note that agricultural employment is up on a year-over-year basis in March."
Other sectors showing increases on a year-over-year basis are the forestry, oil and gas and mining industries and retail and wholesale trade, with finance, insurance and real estate remaining basically unchanged from 2003.
Cline said 2004 seems to be getting off on the right foot. "So far this year we've seen an announcement of a $95 million investment in our ethanol industry in Lloydminster. Statistics Canada has projected total investment in Saskatchewan will exceed $6 billion for the eighth consecutive year, $1.7 billion higher than in 1991."
"A report from KPMG indicates our business climate is competitive with other provinces and other countries. Most independent forecasters expect Saskatchewan to be near the top in economic growth in 2004. Those are all indications of a good climate for economic growth in 2004."
Saskatchewan had the third lowest unemployment rate in Canada in March at 6.4 per cent (seasonally unadjusted), up 0.3 percentage points from March 2003 but well below the national rate of 8.0 per cent. Regina was tied for the third lowest unemployment rate among major Canadian cities at 5.3 per cent.
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| Bob Ellis Industry and Resources Regina Phone: (306) 787-8277 |