A new study by the Bank of Montreal suggests just over half of Canadian businesses believe 2012 will be a better year for them despite global economic uncertainty.
The study finds 51% of Canadian businesses expect a better year compared to 13% who believe it will be worse.
The bank also found that more than 79% of Canadian business owners plan to invest the same amount or more into their business in 2012.
“Coming out of the past recession, many Canadian businesses took deliberate steps to mitigate their risk,” said Cathy Pin, vice-president of commercial banking.
“Where possible they sourced alternative suppliers and diversified to ensure they are not overly reliant on a single customer, sector or market.”
One in three businesses surveyed told BMO they believe the U.S. economy will under-perform in the next five years and this has caused them to change their plans to invest, expand and hire.
Also, one in four Canadian businesses indicate that a poorly performing U.S. economy will be their biggest challenge in 2012.
The telephone survey of 509 business owners by Leger Marketing was conducted between Aug. 30 and Sept. 16.