by MorinvilleNews.com Staff
Small business confidence hit a lowpoint of 45.6 per cent in the November Business Barometer report put out by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB). Although numbers below 50 have occurred in the past few months, it has not been the case since the 2008/2009 and 2020 recessions.
Quebec and Ontario were at the bottom of the scale nationally at 42 percent and 45.4 percent, respectively. Alberta sits at 45.7 per cent, down 2.5 per cent from the previous month. Acros business sectors, agriculture was at 32.4 per cent confidence, hospitality at 40, retail at 40.5 and construction at 45.8. CFIB indicates an index level below 50 means there are more owners who are negative than positive about their business’ outlook.
“Small businesses are facing stronger and stronger headwinds as they head into the last stretch of 2023, with real interest rates choking demand more firmly and continuing to severely restrict credit conditions, while governments at all levels keep adding more fiscal and regulatory pressure on entrepreneurs and employers. Overall, business conditions have seldom been more challenging for so many businesses. Something has got to give soon if we want a foundation for an economic rebound in the upcoming year,” said CFIB Chief Economist and Vice-President of Research Simon Gaudreault in a media release.
CFIB says the low domestic demand indicator has been on the rise since May, reaching its highest point since September 2020, with 46% of businesses reporting it is limiting their sales or growth. Topping the list of business concerns, it has surpassed labour shortages.
November results show increased shares of businesses were worried about tax and regulatory concerns (67%), insurance (60%) and borrowing (53%) costs are also significant concerns for Canadian businesses, according to the November report.
“Looking at a variety of indicators from our tracking survey, there are not a lot of bright spots to report for small businesses, save perhaps for slowly easing labour shortages. But even the latter indicator is still one of the top cost constraints and above its historical average,” Gaudreault added. “2023 has not been the year of the Great Recovery on Main Street, and hopes will now turn to 2024 to finally provide long-awaited normal business conditions.”
The November Business Barometer is available online.
