OTTAWA - Statistics Canada is set to release fresh employment figures for November this morning.

A Reuters poll of economists expects the unemployment rate ticked up to seven per cent last month with a forecast loss of 5,000 jobs.

Royal Bank is calling for the unemployment rate to hold steady at 6.9 per cent with flat job growth in November.

The labour market has surprised economists recently with a gain of more than 120,000 positions over October and September.

RBC economists say the cracks in trade-exposed sectors haven't spread to the wider labour market yet and hiring demand is stabilizing with a rebound in business confidence late in the year.

The November jobs figures will mark the last major data release before the Bank of Canada's final interest rate decision for the year next

See Full Page