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August 28, 2026BUSINESS OPENING AND CLOSING, MAY 2026 Monthly (May vs April 2026, seasonally adjusted)
The number of active businesses in Nova Scotia increased by 0.20% from April to May 2026, rising by 42 to 21,371 active businesses.
Nationally, active businesses edged down 0.01%, with declines in Prince Edward Island, Québec and Ontario offsetting increases in the other seven provinces. Alberta reported the fastest increase in active businesses compared to April.
A business will be classified as 'opening' if it had no employment in the previous month and then has employment in the next month. A business is 'closing' if it had employment in the previous month and no employment in the current month. For opening and closing, the reason could be a permanent change (i.e. business exit) or temporary for reasons such as seasonal operations, capital maintenance or restructuring. Continuing business are those that had employment in both the current and previous month. Active businesses are the sum of continuing and opening business in the current month.
The rate at which business either opened, continued or closed can be examined to see how the number of active businesses has changed. The calculation for the opening, continuing and closure rates are based on the number of active businesses in the previous month.
Most businesses continue operating each month. In May 2026, Nova Scotia's business continuing rate was 95.2%, similar to national average (95.1%). Québec reported the highest business continuing rate (96.2%) while Prince Edward Island reported the lowest continuing rate (94.4%).
Nova Scotia's business opening rate was 4.9% (same as the national rate) in May 2026. Alberta had the highest business opening rate (5.9%) while Québec had the lowest (3.4%).
Nova Scotia's business closing rate was 4.8% in May 2026, below the national average (5.0%). Alberta reported the highest business closing rate (5.5%), while Québec had the lowest business closing rate (3.7%).
Year-over-year (May 2026 vs May 2025)
Compared with May 2025, the number of active businesses was up 1.65% for Nova Scotia - the fastest growth rate among provinces. Nationally, active businesses decreased 0.10% compared to May 2025. Ontario had the steepest decline.
The number of active businesses in the Halifax and East Hants Census Metropolitan Area was up 3.1% from May 2025 to May 2026, the fastest increase among CMAs.
Out of 35 CMAs, 25 reported growth in active businesses over the past 12 months. The sharpest decline in active businesses was in Brantford.
Compared with May 2025, seven sectors saw an increase in active businesses in Nova Scotia in May 2026 with the largest percentage increase in transportation. The steepest decline was in utilities.
Nationally, the number of active businesses was down for eight of sixteen business sectors. The largest gain was in arts/entertainment/recreation, while the steepest decline was in transportation.
Statistics Canada has broken out specific data for tourism-related industries. Compared with May 2025, the number of active tourism-related businesses increased 0.6% in Nova Scotia as of May 2026, with gains in all subsectors except food/beverage (fastest: travel services).
Nationally the number of tourism-related businesses was up 1.1% from May 2025 to May 2026, with gains in food/beverage, accommodations, and recreation/entertainment offsetting declines in transportation and travel services.
Trends
Active businesses in forestry/fishing declined through 2025. Mining/quarrying active businesses had been trending up in the last half of 2025. The number of active businesses in the utilities sector has been steady in recent months.
The number of active businesses in construction has been growing since 2020. Manufacturing businesses have slowly declined over the past two years.
Personal/repair business counts have increased in recent months, while accommodation/food services and arts/recreation business counts have been relatively stable.
Retail and wholesale businesses have declined steadily in recent years.
Active businesses in transportation have been rising slowly since early 2025. The number of active businesses in real estate/leasing have been relatively flat over the last twelve months. Active businesses in administrative/support/call centers have grown steadily since 2024.
Professional/technical services active businesses have grown since early 2025. Finance/insurance/management businesses as well as businesses in information/culture have been stable.
The source data is seasonally adjusted. The data may not aggregate due to firms being classified into multiple industry or geography.
Source: Statistics Canada. Table 33-10-0270-01 Experimental estimates for business openings and closures for Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas; Methodology: Business Opening and Closing
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