For the fifth straight month, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business’s “business barometer” reports that optimism among small business owners in the province has risen. The federation released today the results of its monthly index, which asks business owners whether they expect their business's performance to be stronger or weaker over the next 12 months. A score above 50 on the index indicates more business owners expect better performance than weaker performance, and a score under 50 indicates the reverse.
Newfoundland and Labrador’s index for the October survey was 76.7, more than a point and a half above September’s score of 75, and more than 11 points above the national average (65.6). Newfoundland and Labrador’s score is the highest in the country.
The survey also found that 68 per cent of business owners in the province say the current state of their business is good, a two-point rise over last month; 27 per cent of them say it’s satisfactory, down a point from last month; and five per cent say it’s bad, a decline of one percentage point from September.
