Calgary – Alberta small business confidence gained 2.1 points in April (28.6) according to the Business Barometer index published monthly by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB). The Alberta results are more than 35 points below the range of a healthy growing economy.
“For the first time in six months, this small uptick in small business confidence is a welcome change. Let’s hope we’ve now seen the floor on confidence levels, but it certainly has a long way to climb,” said Amber Ruddy, CFIB’s Director of Provincial Affairs for Alberta.
Despite the small rebound in the overall outlook, 42 percent of small businesses in Alberta still describe their general state of business health as ‘bad’. This measure is up five points from the previous month. Only 15 per cent describe the current business situation as ‘good’, largely unchanged from March.
Insufficient domestic demand is the top limitation for 73 per cent of entrepreneurs, up four points from last month. Small business hiring plans are are still negative, with 35 per cent of owners expecting to cut back and only 11 per cent looking to hire.
Cost constraints stemming from wage pressures are a concern for sixty per cent of small businesses. “Signals from the Premier that there will be a large jump in the minimum wage has many business owners on edge. The Alberta government must do everything in their power to at least stop compounding the challenges of small firms,” said Ruddy.
On a scale between 0 and 100, an index above 50 means owners expecting their business’ performance to be stronger in the next year outnumber those expecting weaker performance. Normally, the economy is growing at its potential when the index level of between 65 and 75.
The national Business Barometer index is 59.2. The provincial numbers were: PEI (70.8), Nova Scotia (64.6), British Columbia (65.4), Ontario (62.6), Quebec (62.2), New Brunswick (57.5), Manitoba (54.0), Saskatchewan (48.8) and Newfoundland & Labrador (46.4).
The April 2016 findings are based on 672 responses, collected from a stratified random sample of CFIB members, to a controlled-access web survey. Data reflect responses received through April 18. Findings are considered accurate to +\- 3.9 per cent 19 times in 20.
CFIB is Canada’s largest association of small- and medium-sized businesses with 109,000 members across every sector and region.