The latest employment figures for Canada suggest an upturn in the jobs market could be on the agenda, an expert has stated.

According to Craig Alexander, chief economist at Toronto-Dominion Bank, there are several statistics in particular that make him moderately hopeful for the future.

Speaking to the Globe and Mail, he said this includes the increase in the number of jobs in the construction industry during the year to March 2011.

Furthermore, he noted that while the number of part-time jobs has declined over this period, there has been a rise in the amount of full-time positions across the wider employment market.

Mr Alexander added that while year-on-year wage growth stood at 2.5 per cent in February, this went up to 2.7 per cent during the following month.

The data was published shortly after Statistics Canada revealed that in January this year, gross domestic product grew by 0.5 per cent.

Posted by Sarah Dixon