TORONTO – Job gains in Canada and job losses in the U.S. in the last month have brought the unemployment rates of both countries on par for the first time in more than 26 years.

Statistics Canada said Friday that Canada's unemployment rate remained steady at 6.1 percent as 15,200 jobs were created in August. The United States' jobless rate rose to a five-year high of 6.1 percent, after employers slashed 84,000 jobs.

It is the first time since February 1982 that Canada's jobless rate has not exceeded that of the U.S.

However, economists have pointed out that different methods of counting the jobless likely cause the U.S. rate to be understated by at least half a percentage point compared with Canada.

“In normal circumstances, this would be a ho-hum (humdrum) report,” BMO Capital Markets economist Douglas Porter said of the Canadian data. “But compared to July's dismal report and compared to today's release in the U.S., it certainly stands tall.”

The Canadian economy experienced 55,000 job losses in July, the biggest monthly loss since the 1991 recession, which had raised fears of a faster economic slowdown than expected.

So far this year, Canada has added a modest 86,900 net jobs, compared with 221,000 during the first eight months of last year.

“The trend in Canada's labor market is still a bit soft, but not the disaster that it appeared to be after July's employment numbers,” said CIBC economist Avery Shenfeld.

The August job recovery was broad-based and largely reversed recent trends. For example, for the first time in many months, the beleaguered manufacturing sector added employees, with 13,800 new factory jobs counted.

Statistics Canada noted that manufacturing has lost 14,000 workers since the beginning of this year, a significant improvement from its 76,000 job losses in the first eight months of last year.

Overall, the private sector added 40,900 workers in August after shedding 95,000 in July. And, there were 16,100 more full-time workers in August than in July.

On the flip side, the U.S. unemployment numbers were worse than economists had forecast. Analysts had estimated 75,000 jobs would be lost in August – another indication of how the housing collapse and dismal auto manufacturing industry is taking its toll on the U.S. economy.

And while the news is grim for U.S. candidates vying for voter favor in the upcoming presidential election, Canada's numbers are helping to bolster Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper, who is expected to call a federal election this weekend.