The Canadian economy has stabilized based on the latest business confidence survey findings from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB).
The business barometer index remains virtually the same at 58.6 for July compared to 58.5 in June. Despite the recent announcement from the Bank of Canada on the economy coming out of recession, SME confidence has not yet turned the corner.
“These results show most small businesses appear to be remaining in defensive mode,” said Ted Mallett, CFIB’s vice-president of research and chief economist. “We find the lowest optimism is in Quebec, as well as in the agricultural, transportation, hospitality and industrial sectors. For the first time, full-time employment indicators have now hit net negative. Looking ahead to expected performance in the next three or four months, the balance of opinion barely covers the break-even mark.”
The July 2009 findings are based on 1,047 responses, collected from a stratified random sample of CFIB members, to a controlled-access web survey.
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