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August 18, 2022BUSINESS COUNTS, JUNE 2022 Statistics Canada today released business counts data for June 2022.
The number of business locations in Nova Scotia with employees increased 1.8% between December 2021 and June 2022. The number of goods producing locations increased 1.8%, and total services sector locations increased 1.2%. The number of unclassified business locations was up 8.8%.
For goods producing locations in Nova Scotia with employees, most industries reported a rising number of business locations (though utilities were unchanged). Construction reported the largest increase in the number of business locations.
For services producing locations in Nova Scotia with employees, all industries except health care and social assistance registered an increase in the number of locations. The largest increases in percentage terms were reported in transportation/warehousing and arts/recreation.
*The 2021 Census changed the boundaries of the Halifax Census Metropolitan Area to incorporate East Hants. The June 2022 business counts reflect this change while the business counts for the Halifax CMA from December 2021 do not include East Hants. Although Halifax's business count increased by 8.0%, about half of this growth is attributable to the addition of business locations from East Hants that had previously not been reported as part of the Halifax CMA.
*With the incorporation of East Hants data into the Halifax CMA, the number of businesses counted outside the city decreased. Although the count of business locations outside the city appears to be down by 2.9%, this is entirely because of the inclusion of East Hants business locations into the Halifax CMA data. Without this change, business counts outside Halifax would have been about the same between December 2021 and June 2022.
Across Canada, the number of businesses was up by 2.0% with the fastest growth in Ontario and British Columbia. All provinces reported increased business counts from December 2021 to June 2022, with the slowest growth in Newfoundland and Labrador.
Nationally, goods-producing sector locations with employees increased 1.2% from December 2021 to June 2022. In percentage terms, the largest gains were reported in Nova Scotia (+1.8%). Newfoundland and Labrador reported the only decline in goods producing business locations.
From December 2021 to June 2022, the number of services sector locations with employees increased 1.7% across Canada. Ontario and British Columbia reported the largest increases from the previous period. All provinces reported more service-producing business locations with employees; the slowest growth was in New Brunswick.
Across Canada, business counts increased in all reported CMAs, with the fastest growth in Windsor and Peterborough CMAs. As noted above, the new Census geographies include a number of new CMAs (Fredericton, Drummondville, Red Deer, Kamloops, Chilliwack) for which December 2021 data were unavailable.
With the June 2022 business counts, Statistics Canada has increased the geographic detail available, including Census Subdivisions. The analysis below aggregates Census Subdivisions into their respective Census Divisions (ie: counties).
Counties in Southern Nova Scotia as well as those in the eastern mainland and Cape Breton (excluding Cape Breton County) reported notably higher percentages of business locations in agriculture/forestry/fishing. Construction businesses were a larger share of locations in Hants County (here including both East Hants and West Hants). Halifax county (the county only, without the East Hants portion of the CMA) had a much lower share of agriculture/forestry/fishing businesses among its total count.
Halifax county reports a notably higher share of businesses in the professional/technical services industry.
Key definitions for Statistics Canada's Business Register:
Statistical Enterprise
An enterprise is the legal operating entity at the top of the operating structure. There is only one enterprise per operating structure. It is associated with a complete set of financial statements.
Statistical Establishment
A statistical establishment is the production entity or the smallest grouping of production entities which:
- Produces a homogeneous set of goods or services;
- Does not cross provincial boundaries; and
- Provides data on the value of output together with the cost of principal intermediate inputs used along with the cost and quantity of labour resources used to produce the output.
- For example, a plant in the manufacturing industry which provides accounting information regarding the value of shipments (sales), direct costs and labour costs is considered a single establishment. However, two stores in the retail industry may be considered one establishment if the accounting information, described in item (c) above, is not available separately, but is combined at a higher level.
Statistical Location
The location is an operating entity, specifically a production entity which:
- Conducts economic activity at or from a single physical location or group of locations;
- Resides within the smallest standardized geographical area;
- Is able to provide employment data at a minimum.
- Multiple locations can be found under a single enterprise.
Sources: Statistics Canada. Table 33-10-0568-01 Canadian Business Counts, with employees, June 2022; Table 33-10-0576-01 Canadian Business Counts, with employees, census metropolitan areas and census subdivisions, June 2022; Table 33-10-0493-01 Canadian Business Counts, with employees, December 2021; Table 33-10-0495-01 Canadian Business Counts, with employees, census metropolitan areas and census subdivisions, December 2021
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