New data shows economic spark of reopening extinguished by rising costs, talent shortage and debt load: Canadian Chamber of Commerce

(OTTAWA) – November 26, 2021 – The Canadian Chamber of Commerce’s Chief Economist, Stephen Tapp, issued the following statement regarding new data in today’s Canadian Survey on Business Conditions.

“Today’s survey shows that a robust recovery remains elusive for many businesses as a combination of rising input costs, a severe talent crunch, and supply chain disruptions are hampering their ability to bounce back from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The long, slow road to a private-sector led recovery continues after nearly two years of challenges.

Rising input costs remain the number one concern for Canadian businesses, with 43% identifying them as the biggest near-term obstacle. At the same time, the vast majority of businesses (87%) don’t expect their profitability to improve in the next 6 months, with one third expecting their profitability to fall into the New Year. These results suggest a significant part of private sector businesses will be standing still or even sliding backwards in the months ahead.

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BDC launches series of discussion groups with women entrepreneurs to mark Women’s Entrepreneurship Day

Events will be an opportunity for women entrepreneurs to share challenges, insights, and network

Montreal QC, November 18, 2021 - In celebration of Women’s Entrepreneurship Day on November 19, BDC is launching a series of discussion groups hosted by Isabelle Hudon, BDC’s first female President and CEO.

The first event will take place on December 15 in virtual format. In the new year, Isabelle will visit cities from coast to coast to meet and listen to women business owners, particularly those in industries hit hardest through the pandemic including travel, tourism, retail and hospitality. Each event will be an opportunity for these entrepreneurs to share their challenges and insights, and network.

“Before the pandemic, we needed 100 years to achieve gender equality across the world. Today, it’s expected we need 135 years!” said Hudon quoting World Economic Forum data. “To increase momentum, we must set ambitious goals, followed by concrete actions. Our objective for these discussion groups is to bring these driven women together to learn how we can do more and better to support their ambitions.”

The initiative is part of BDC's +Impact project, a fulsome review of the organization’s activities to help evolve its aspiration for the next decade to best support Canadian entrepreneurs. As part of this exercise, BDC surveyed 1,000 women entrepreneurs about their needs coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic. It found that women are more likely than other business owners to prioritize growing their businesses, yet, have lower confidence in achieving their goals. They are more likely to adapt their operations to reduce the impact on the environment. They also have fewer challenges with attracting and retaining staff.

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Milton Logistics Hub Provides Important Reinforcement to Canada’s Supply Chains

(Toronto – November 24, 2021) –Today, Rocco Rossi, President & CEO, Ontario Chamber of Commerce, released the following statement in reaction to the Canadian Transportation Agency’s approval of the Milton Logistics Hub Project:

“As we have learned over the last two years of the pandemic, a strong economy, underpinned by robust infrastructure that facilitates the movement of goods and people, is absolutely critical to managing emergencies.

“The Milton Logistics Hub will help facilitate the delivery of everything Canadians need to live and work — from food products and medical supplies to cars and electronics — while ensuring Canadian manufacturers can efficiently access domestic and international markets.

“We commend CN on their efforts to advancing this project and the government for recognizing its importance to help stimulate the economy and further reinforce our supply chains across Canada when we need them most.”

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TECHNOLOGY

The KLCFDC has a number of technology resources that are available to you.

First of all, as part of the Canada Business Ontario (CBO) and the Canada Business Network (CBN), our offices are equipped with a public access workstation where you can connect to the Internet. As mentioned, this is a joint government venture with FedDev Ontario developed to provide access to information on Federal and Provincial government programs and services for small business.

We may also be able to connect you to other groups or organizations where you can perhaps either temporarily use or possibly secure a computer for your personal use. We can also assist with select offices services, such as small photocopying jobs or faxing. Finally, we will often print materials for clients who don’t have a computer readily available and may use an alternative method to the Internet to gain the access to what they need.

Access to our information and services is available free of charge, for your use from Monday to Friday, 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.

We do ask that you call us at 328-0261 extension 21 to insure that you will have a computer to work with when you need it.

The KLCFDC may also be able to provide the opportunity for you to secure a computer, for those who need even more computer time. We can provide work with you and our partners to look to provide these on a limited basis. We are also willing to help with selected office services, such as small volume photocopying or faxing.

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