The job vacancy rate in Canada was 2.9% in February,
unchanged from the prior month but down from 3.7% a year ago, noted Bank of Montreal (BMO).

After a sprint higher in the months coming out of the pandemic, it's now lower than the level prevailing prior to COVID-19, when it averaged 3.2% in 2019, said the bank.

Meantime, the unemployment rate has been toggling around the high 6% zone, nudging up to 6.7% in March. That's up 0.6 percentage point in a year and roughly a percentage point higher than pre-pandemic levels, stated BMO.

So on both counts -- the vacancy rate and the unemployment rate -- the Canadian job market is weaker than pre-COVID levels, pointed out the bank.

That's a completely different world than three years ago, when for a brief spell there were more vacant jobs than unemployed Canadians -- an actual labor shortage.

According to BMO, those days are long gone: There are now
almost three unemployed Canadians for every vacant job. The trade war with the United States could tip the balance even weaker.