Canada’s unemployment rate ticked down to 6.5 per cent in January, and the economy lost 25,000 jobs mostly due to a decline in part-time work, Statistics Canada said on Friday.

The unemployment rate — the lowest since September 2024 — was the result of fewer people actively searching for work. The data agency also noted that the number of people who were neither employed nor looking for work increased in January on a year-over-year basis.

While part-time employment fell by 1.8 per cent, there was a 0.3 per cent gain in full-time work. The number of private-sector employees fell by 52,000, partly offsetting gains made during the last three months of 2025. The number of public sector employees saw little change.

Manufacturing, educational services and public administration drove the majority of the job losses, while jobs were gained in information, culture and recreation; business, building and other support services; agriculture; and utilities.

Employment fell by 67,000 in Ontario, while Alberta gained 20,000 jobs, Saskatchewan gained 6,100 jobs and Newfoundland and Labrador gained 3,800 jobs.

Average hourly wages were up 3.3 per cent, or $1.18, for a total of $37.17 an hour, compared to the same period last year.

“Overall, today’s employment report was very much a mixed bag, with both employment and unemployment apparently declining in the same month,” wrote Andrew Grantham, senior economist at CIBC Capital Markets, in a note to clients.

“As a result, we doubt this will have much impact at the Bank of Canada, and it doesn’t change our view that interest rates will be on hold for the remainder of this year,” he said.