Exporters More Brave Than Resilient

The drop in confidence is across the board, touching all sectors of the economy and all regions of the country. The drop occurred regardless of the age of the company, and regardless of size. In fact, the older the firm, and the larger, the more pessimistic it is, according to the survey. The rise of the Canadian dollar to well above U.S. dollar parity in the weeks just before the survey clearly played a big role in this outcome. Some respondents expressed disbelief that the dollar could remain so strong, but 41% were still expecting the dollar to appreciate further. Although this was down from 52% six months earlier, only 23% were forecasting that the dollar would decline – up from 17% six months earlier, but still a small number. Nor is the domestic economy offering much solace. The survey recorded very large drops in expectations for domestic economic conditions and domestic sales. Hiring intentions also moderated, although still only 11% of surveyed companies expect to actually cut staff. http://www.edc.ca/english/docs/ereports/commentary/publications_14212.htm

Note: http://www.edc.ca/engli...