Business barometer takes a confidence hit
Posted Jun 1, 2011 2:55 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Canadian small business owners are not as optimistic about the economy as they have been in the recent past.
“The business barometer is still in the positive territory,” says Richard Truscott of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business. “In fact, Alberta is better than any other part of the country. But, having said that, there are some concerns about energy costs and also some concerns about” (the) “labour market, in terms of finding skilled workers.”
The latest CFIB business barometer is at its lowest point, nationally, in seven months.
“Definitely they’re concerned about energy,” adds Truscott, “and fuel costs is helping to moderate some of their optimism about the future performance of their business and the economy. We’re certainly seeing that reflected in the national numbers.”
Truscott says at this point the drop in business confidence is just a concern, but if the trend continues the concern could easily become a major worry.
(We’ll have) “to wait to see if this is part of a longer term trend,” says Truscott, “but it is encouraging that generally in the last six months or a year, that the optimism level, the confidence levels among the small business owners right across the country has improved quite considerably.”
Truscott says the numbers show business confidence levels are higher in resource rich provinces compared to those which rely on manufacturing to pay the bills.
