If this keeps up for much longer, Canada's small-business owners will soon become downright bullish. As it is, the new American Express Small Business Monitor shows a fast-rising optimism among the people who run the country's SMEs.
In the second-quarter 2012 survey, which was conducted in April, 23% of respondents said their company's revenue and profitability are improving significantly. that was more than triple the 7% level in Q2 2011. And in the latest survey, 37% reported that sales and profits are improving slightly, a sizable jump from 26% a year earlier.
When asked about the outlook for their firms' future revenue and profitability, business owners saw mostly blue skies ahead. Among Q2 2012 survey respondents, 32% said they're hopeful it will get a lot better—miles ahead of 14% a year earlier. And 38% said they're hopeful it will get a little better, up from 33% in Q2 2011.
Still, you can't run a business without being worried about something. fully 64% of respondents said they're at least a little stressed about the state of the economy, up from 54% in Q2 2011. However, even on this subject, it wasn't as bad as all that: just 7% reported feeling extremely stressed, down from 9% a year earlier.
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