Canberra Business Chamber CEO Greg Harford says the biggest concerns are the increased costs of doing business, and challenges in attracting and retaining skilled staff. Photo: Canberra Business Chamber.
More Canberra businesses are feeling the pinch as the economy slows and are less confident about their future, according to the latest survey from the Canberra Business Chamber.
The Chamber’s second quarterly Business Beat survey, which tracks business performance and confidence in the ACT, shows that 49 per cent of businesses did not meet sales targets in the December quarter, a 10 per cent increase on the previous quarter.
Confidence also fell, with only 37 per cent of businesses reporting feeling optimistic about the present business situation, down from 43 per cent in the September quarter.
Looking ahead, 36 per cent of respondents expect their business to grow over the next 12 months, down from 46 per cent the previous quarter.
A similar proportion expects business to remain stable (38 per cent), but a quarter of businesses in Canberra expect their business to shrink over the next 12 months.
Canberra Business Chamber chief executive Greg Harford said the biggest issues facing businesses were the increased costs of doing business, and challenges in attracting and retaining skilled staff.
“Business owners are also grappling with tough decisions about putting prices up in response to the rising costs of doing business,” he said.
“Reduced customer demand was the single biggest issue this quarter for 17 per cent of business owners in Canberra. This may signal that we will continue to see inflationary pressures feeding through into consumer pricing over the next few months.”
Mr Hartford said regulations remain an issue with workforce relations and compliance, including WorkSafe and workers’ compensation requirements, specific concerns.
Businesses that work with the Federal Government continued to be impacted by the reduction in the use of consultants and contractors.
The survey found reduced customer demand was the single biggest issue during the quarter for 17 per cent of business owners in Canberra, reflecting the impact of rising interest rates and cost-of-living increases forcing consumers to tighten the purse strings.
It said customer demand may have slowed for some businesses during the Christmas period and heading into the summer months.
Global uncertainty and the increasing costs of all aspects of doing business would also be impacting confidence levels.
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