The Langley Chamber is pleased to share the latest 'Canadian Survey on Business Conditions' from the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and Statistics Canada, which reports on business sentiment and expectations based on survey results from over 15,000 Canadian businesses.   Download the full report here > 

This quarter's report continues to show economic headwinds for business, with cost-related challenges being the main concerns facing Canadian companies.  While there are signs of the labour market loosening, hiring and retaining workers remains a key concern for businesses and the labour market remains significantly tighter than pre-pandemic.

Other highlights from the report include:

• Canadian businesses are expecting an slowdown, with lower sales and hiring
• Inflation remains the top business concern itself, followed closely by higher input costs, higher interest/debt costs, and higher insurance costs – all speaking to significant concerns with the cost of doing business
• The transportation sector was significantly and negatively impacted with the port strike in BC, and forest fire disruptions across the country
• 26% of businesses expect to raise prices in the next quarter
• The sectors with the most optimistic business outlook include wholesale trade, arts/entertainment/recreation, and manufacturing, with more than 70% of respondents from those sectors expressing a positive outlook for the next 12 months
• Labour challenges remain most serious in health care, accommodation/food service, manufacturing, and construction

 
The outlook for Canadian businesses weakened noticeably in the third quarter, according to Statistics Canada’s latest Canadian Survey on Business Conditions (CSBC). Businesses expect sales and hiring to slow in the near term. With cost challenges remaining pervasive, profits are expected to shrink. The outlook is most concerning in Ontario (particularly for Toronto) and British Columbia, whereas Quebec continues to have the most optimistic outlook in the country.  Canada’s GDP unexpectedly contracted in the second quarter, and the CSBC provides new evidence of ongoing turmoil in the third quarter as the transportation sector was hard hit by the nearly two-week-long port strike at the start of July, adding to disruptions from forest fires.
 - Stephen Tapp, Chief Economic, Canadian Chamber of Commerce
 

Read the full report here >