OTTAWA -- The Ottawa economy heated up in February as the city emerged from the COVID-19 lockdown, bringing the unemployment rate to its lowest level since the start of the pandemic.

Statistics Canada reported Ottawa added 13,200 jobs in February.

The unemployment rate in Ottawa fell from 6.5 per cent in January to 6.1 per cent in February. That's the lowest unemployment rate in Ottawa since March 2020, when it was at 4.9 per cent.

According to Statistics Canada, there were 580,900 people employed in the city of Ottawa in February, 2021. There were 580,200 people in the labour force in March 2020 and 595,500 people in the labour force in February 2020.

Across Canada, the economy added 259,000 jobs in February. The national unemployment rate fell to 8.2 per cent, the lowest level since March 2020.

In Kingston, the unemployment rate increased from 6.5 per cent in January to 7.3 per cent last month. Belleville's unemployment rate fell to 7.4 per cent in February from 4.8 per cent in January, as more people looked for work in the city.

Across the river in Gatineau, 1,000 new jobs were added to the economy last month. However, with more people looking for work in Gatineau, the unemployment rate increased from 7.3 per cent in January to 7.6 per cent in February.