WINNIPEG, March 8 (MarketsFarm News) – The following is a glance at the news moving markets in Canada and globally.

– Canada’s labour market generated 55,900 net new positions in February, following even bigger gains of 66,800 full time positions in January. This increase outshines United States job creation, which increased by just 20,000 in February. Despite the increase, Canada’s unemployment rate remains at 5.8 per cent, according to a report from Statistics Canada. However, this job increase saw the youth jobless rate decline from 11.2 per cent to 10.8 per cent.

– Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appeared before reporters on Thursday, March 7, to address the ongoing SNC-Lavalin scandal. Trudeau did not apologize, and further denied any wrongdoing. “Ultimately, I believe our government will be stronger for having wrestled with these issues,” he said.

– Oil prices fell on Friday morning, reflecting a weakening global economic outlook and increase in crude stockpiles. After holding steady for most of the week, futures fell as much as 2.7 per cent. Crude prices have been consistently climbing through mid-February as the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies sought to curb output. American sanctions on Iranian and Venezuelan oil further tightened supplies.

– A weaker-than-expected February jobs report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has resulted in market losses and speculation. Futures for the S&P 500, Dow, and Nasdaq all dropped by almost one per cent each. The report comes after speculation that sectors such as manufacturing are softening.
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