Statistics Canada also noted that 32 per cent of retail businesses said they were impacted by trade tensions in May, compared with 36 per cent in April.

The increases in both employment and the labour force figures suggest that construction has begun its summer busy period – and that new major projects have started or are ramping up.

Hub owners BMI Group will build a direct connection from Iroquois Falls to the Cochrane junction, where construction materials will be railed north to their destination in Moosonee.

The project is part of the province’s work to accommodate the future widening of Highway 401.

The agreement opens the door for the provinces to build key energy- and trade-related infrastructure such as new pipelines and rail lines.