OTTAWA, Oct 6 (Reuters) - The Canadian economy added fewer jobs than expected last month, with all the gains coming from the public sector, though the pace of wage growth was the fastest in more than a year, data from Statistics Canada showed on Friday.
The addition of 10,000 jobs in September marked a slowdown from the previous month and fell short of forecasts for a gain of 14,500. The unemployment rate held steady at 6.2 percent as the number of people looking for work edged down.
Average hourly wages for permanent employees rose 2.2 percent from a year ago, the fastest annual pace since June 2016, the statistics agency said.
The acceleration suggested there may be a recovery occurring in wage growth, which has been weak despite strong labor market gains over the past year and is being closely watched by the Bank of Canada.
September's job gains were driven by the public sector, which added 26,200 positions, while the private sector shed 15,500 jobs.
The education sector led the way up, adding 20,000 positions, while the public administration field added 4,500 jobs. Elsewhere, the wholesale and retail trade sector added 16,600 jobs.
<^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Graphic - Canada jobs, unemployment
http://link.reuters.com/fax39t Graphic - Full-time vs. part-time
http://link.reuters.com/pev29v Graphic - Temporary vs. permanent
http://link.reuters.com/xuf98v Graphic - Canada economic snapshot
http://tmsnrt.rs/2e8hNWV
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