Canada’s job market surprisingly gained 83,000 positions in June, pushing the unemployment rate down to 6.9 per cent from seven per cent and adding another wrinkle to predictions of where interest rates are headed.

OTTAWA — The Bank of Canada is increasingly expected to keep its benchmark interest rate on hold later this month after the labour market delivered a surprise hiring surge in June.

Benjamin Reitzes, BMO’s managing director of Canadian rates and macro strategy, said in a note that while he is “skeptical” of the strong report given the uncertainty hanging over the economy, the June jobs figures were “pretty decent overall.”