Toronto Star: ‘Cracks beginning to show.’ Consumer spending plunges in Ontario as interest rate hikes start to hurt

The cost of doing business has gotten more expensive, with everything from wages, materials and debt repayment to overhead expenses now pricier than before the pandemic. At the same time, companies are still trying to recover from lost sales from COVID-19 restrictions.

In 2016, about 4 per cent of Canadian workers worked from home. In the third quarter of last year, according to a Canadian Chamber of Commerce survey, more than a third of all workers spent at least part of the week at home.

Strong consumer spending patterns across Canada and particularly in Ottawa seem promising, but the data show only part of the picture, experts agree.