Confidence among Canadian small business owners is down for the third time in the past four months.
The Canadian Federation of Independent Business's Business Baramoter fell to 65.7 in July, down slightly from a score of 66.4 in June.
Much of the mood for small business owners in Canada varies depending on the region. In Newfoundland & Labrador for example, the Barometer index was at 71.9, higher than the national average. Those confident feelings lie in contrast with business owners in Manitoba, Quebec, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island, which had lower confidence levels than the national average.
"The estimates for July have fallen in eight of 13 industry groupings and seven out of 10 provinces, suggesting the economy is settling into a phase of slower growth," said CFIB cheif economist Ted Mallett. He went onto say that entrepreneurs were betting on "higher interest rates and slower growth in the future."
The CFIB was in the news recently when it came out against a proposed wage increase for public sector workers in Grand Falls-Windsor. The pro-business group said that the public sector should not be increasing spending when the private sector had been forced to scale back.
