Canada's small business optimism index has now been on the rise for seven months in a row and is at the highest level in almost a year. Labour shortages and their side effects are still one of the biggest headaches for small businesses.
Provincial picture
All but two provinces report optimism levels above mid-50. Saskatchewan and Quebec are the only ones just below the 50 mark. PEI and NL are leading in optimism over the long term with significant improvements from the previous month, and even above their historical averages for this time of the year. Saskatchewan is the only province that had a notable drop in optimism reaching 51.9.
Sectoral picture
Overall, long term optimism is improving in most sectors. All but three industries report confidence levels above 50: transportation; finance, insurance, real estate, and leasing; and agriculture. For agriculture businesses, this is the 12th consecutive month of very low readings of optimism. While some sectors have seen small improvements in optimism, a few have registered decreases in business confidence, most notably transportation and natural resources sectors.
Labour market indicators
Full-time staffing plans are moderate for this time of the year with only 22% of SMEs planning to hire while 12% are planning to lay off. Average wage increase plans have seen a small decrease to 3.2 from April level of 3.3.
This is an excerpt from the CFIB’s report.