The recent budget announcements leave many small business owners in the cold
The federal government recently announced the distribution of its massive stimulus program funds, and a report from the Globe and Mail suggests that main focus of the funding will be public infrastructure. Unfortunately for small business owners, this leaves them with few targeted measures.
Avery Shenfeld, chief economist at Consumer Internet Bank of Canada, suggests that the government has already given the small business sector a lot of its limited funds in light of recent economic turmoil. "There's probably a realism across Canada [among smaller businesses] that the cupboard is bare, and the government has doled out huge amounts in the prior budget that there's not much left."
Nonetheless many feel that small businesses will be the main drivers of the economy and the budget's failure to assist SMEs is short-sighted.
The source reports that employment insurance premiums will rise in 2011, which might add costs to most small businesses. Some entrepreneurs have expressed concern that this will hinder small business growth and render them unable to make new hires in the coming months.
Still, increased consumer spending might help outweigh hardships small business owners will face under the lack of support from federal budget plans. Nielsen's Global Consumer Confidence Index shows that Canadian consumers are increasingly confident about the markets, and the latest real GDP report from Statistics Canada showed that strong consumer spending was a large contributor to the indicator's improved performance.
