Canadian Small Business Confidence Steady in October; Hiring Outlook Weakest Since Pandemic: CFIB

10:05 AM EDT, 10/22/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Optimism among Canadian small businesses remained largely unchanged in October, with the Canadian Federation of Independent Business's (CFIB) long-term Business Barometer holding at 50.0 and its short-term index steady at 45.3, as firms continued to face weak demand and rising costs. Weak demand remained the biggest barrier to business growth, cited by 50% of small and medium-sized businesses, followed by skilled labor shortages at 43%, wrote CFIB in Thursday's Business Barometer note. Planned price increases eased to 2.8%, while wage growth slowed to 2.2%, it added. Hiring plans also weakened, with 22% of businesses expecting to cut jobs compared with just 11% planning to hire, marking the weakest net hiring outlook since the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite rising fuel costs, businesses expect to pass on an average of just 21% of the additional costs to customers, according to CFIB. Provincial business confidence, measured using three-month moving averages, remained near the 50-point mark across most provinces, with the four largest ones also recording readings around the breakeven level, said CFIB.