BMO survey: Most Canadian entrepreneurs confident in business prospects, economy

A large majority of Canadian small business owners express confidence in their business prospects and the state of their economy, new research reveals.

BMO Financial Group, Montreal, publishedthis finding in a summary of results from a survey, the BMO Small Business Confidence Report, of 500 Canadian small business owners. Conducted by Pollara Strategic Insights, Toronto, the survey produces an index score that measures the level of confidence small business owners have in the Canadian economy based on key indicators, including how they think their business is performing, if they believe the next year will be a better/worse year for business and if they expect their business will grow/shrink next year.

As a single-figure snapshot of small business confidence, this year’s index score registers at 63 out of 100. This annual “pulse check” also finds that small business owners are over four times more likely to say that 2013 will be a better year than 2012.

Nearly three-quarters of Canadian entrepreneurs responding to the survey (72%) say they are confident in their business prospects and the state of the economy, with the highest level (88%) registered by businesses in the prairie provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

Nearly three-quarters (72%) of the small business owners polled describe their business performance in 2012 (year to date) to be ‘excellent’ to ‘good’, while almost one-third (28%) indicate that their business has performed ‘fair’ to ‘very poor’ this year.