(Photo: Canadian Press)

By Justin Goulet

Businesses expecting to face challenges in next three months: survey

Feb 28, 2022 | 1:44 PM

OTTAWA, ON – Canadian businesses are expecting to face a variety of challenges over the next three months, according to a survey from Statistics Canada.

From January 4 to February 7, 2022, the agency conducted the Canadian Survey on Business Conditions. The survey collected information on the environment businesses are currently operating in and their expectations moving forward. It is conducted on a quarterly basis and respondents were asked what their expectations would be over the next three-month period.

Depending on when businesses responded, that three-month period could range from January 4 to May 7.

Some respondents noted they are facing challenges in maintaining inventory levels or acquiring inputs, products, and supplies, domestically and/or abroad. Those businesses expected their challenges to worsen in the short term. Over the next three months, half of responding businesses expect their profitability to remain relatively unchanged, over one-third expect to see increase the prices they charge, and more than three-quarters expect their number of employees to stay the same.

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A lack of workers was raised as a concern by some respondents, with 37 per cent of all businesses expected a shortage in the labour force over the next three months.

However, 60.8 per cent of businesses indicated they have some plans over the next 12 months related to recruitment, retention and training.

RISING COSTS

50.3 per cent of businesses cited the rising cost of inputs, including labour, capital, energy and raw materials as a challenge in the next three months.

That’s up from 42.5 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2021.

35.6 per cent of businesses said they expect the cost of insurance to be an obstacle in the next three months. 46.2 per cent of those businesses were in transportation and warehousing, 46.0 per cent for construction and mining, quarrying and oil and gas extraction at 45.2 per cent.

SUPPLY CHAIN ISSUES

32.1 per cent of businesses expect difficulty acquiring inputs, products or supplies domestically in the next three months. Of the responding businesses, over half, 52.4 per cent, anticipate these challenges to continue for six months or more.

Few businesses expect supply chain challenges to improve (8.7 per cent) in the next three months, but nearly half (48 per cent) expect the situation to remain about the same. 43.4 per cent of businesses believe supply chain challenges will worsen.

MEN & WOMEN IN THE WORKPLACE

The survey found that 36.8 per cent of employees in senior management positions in the first quarter of 2022 were women. 63.2 per cent were men.

Comparatively, in other management positions, the average percentage of employees that were women and men were almost equal.

Full survey results are available through Statistics Canada’s website.