The Canadian Finance and Leasing Association (CFLA) released the results of its 2023 Q1 and Q2 Industry Business Confidence Survey. Individual sentiment on most responses improved from the previous 2022 Q3 and Q4 survey, though sentiment is still lower than the historical average.

Business Confidence Survey highlights:

• Twenty-four percent of respondents indicated pessimism about their company’s prospects compared to 28.5 percent from the previous survey in 2022 Q3 and Q4;
• Seventy percent of respondents expect overall margins to increase or stay the same, compared to 40 percent in the previous survey;
• Fifty-four percent of respondents expect new business volumes to increase, compared to 48 percent in the previous survey.

“I’m pleased to see more optimism in the market amidst predictions of a looming recession,” said Michael Rothe, CFLA President and CEO. “I know we still have some difficult economic headwinds coming our way, but I’m confident our industry will continue innovating and working hard to help Canadian businesses prosper.”

The data the Industry Business Confidence Survey captures:

Conducted semi-annually, the CFLA Business Confidence Survey asks individual respondents about their outlooks on business volumes, margins, debt ratios, credit approvals, mergers and acquisitions, availability of capital, delinquency rates, and staffing. The survey is an individual sentiment analysis and does not reflect the opinions of the CFLA or its member companies.

The CFLA publishes more information about its Industry Business Confidence Survey online and provides CFLA members with a detailed report on the results. Visit the CFLA at www.cfla-acfl.ca to learn more.