Short-term business confidence tumbled in December as the Omicron spread intensified globally and wage pressures remained elevated.

According to the latest CFIB Business Barometer reading, the 3-month outlook for Canadian small business retreated 4.5 points to 45.1 points. A value below 50 points suggests that on net, businesses are downbeat about the coming months.

With a survey period of December 1 to 15, tighter COVID restrictions had yet to be implemented in many regions but some businesses may have already been on alert given the global news flow.

The steepest declines were observed in the retail sector, while hospitality confidence remained low. The long-term (12- month outlook) index was little changed at 62.6 points suggesting at the time of the survey, businesses remained upbeat about the year ahead…read more.