Business Obstacle Forecasts By Industry And Size For Q1 2026

First quarter of 2026 survey data from Statistics Canada details the most challenging obstacles expected by Canadian businesses over the next three months. Responses are categorized by North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes, business employment size, type of business, activity, and majority ownership. The dataset was published by Statistics Canada in February 2026.

Use Cases

• Analyze correlation between business_employment_size and the reported most_challenging_obstacle to identify size-dependent risk factors.
• Compare obstacle expectations across NAICS codes to forecast industry-specific economic pressures for Q1 2026.
• Model the influence of majority_ownership and type_of_business on perceived future challenges using categorical survey data.

Strengths

• Data covers the first quarter of 2026, providing a forward-looking perspective.
• Structured by multiple dimensions including NAICS, business size, and ownership type for detailed breakdowns.

Limitations

• Sample size and row count are unknown, limiting statistical reliability assessment.
• Data is specific to Canada, limiting generalizability to other geographies.

Provenance

Source

Statistics Canada

Collection Method

Business survey

Time Range

First quarter of 2026

Freshness

Data is for a future period (Q1 2026) and was last updated in February 2026.

Geography

Canada