The Canadian Press

Statistics Canada reports 698,800 people received regular Employment Insurance benefits in January, down 47,700 from December.

It was their fourth straight monthly decline as the number of beneficiaries fell in every province, especially Ontario, Alberta, British Columbia and Quebec.

The agency says there were 239,100 initial and renewal claims received in January, down 20,200 from December.

Claims fell in every province except Newfoundland and Labrador, and the largest decline was in Ontario, where claims dropped by 8,200.

StatsCan says more large centres than in previous months showed a lower number of EI beneficiaries.

The year-over-year rate of growth in the number of regular beneficiaries was faster among women (20.6 per cent) than among men (12.8).

In contrast, during most of 2009, the number of male EI beneficiaries grew at a much faster pace than for women.

During this year-long period, the fastest increase in the number of EI beneficiaries was among people aged 55 and over. Their numbers rose by 21.9 per cent to 164,800. The increase among older women was 29 per cent, compared with 18.7 among their male counterparts.

The number of recipients under 25 rose three times faster among women than men. However, in January there were 22,600 young women receiving benefits, well below the level of 74,300 young men.