Although economic indicators are showing signs of improvement, small businesses in Canada have not gained much confidence in the past month, reveals a recent Canadian Federation of Independent Business poll.

The CFIB’s monthly business barometer index, which surveys more than 1,000 small businesses, remained virtually the same at 58.6 in July compared with 58.5 in June. Measured on a scale between 0 and 100, an index level above 50 means owners expect their businesses’ performance to be stronger in the next year outnumber those expecting weaker performance.

Across the country, business sentiment remained the lowest in Quebec for the second month in a row, at 49.

Sentiment was highest — and well ahead of the other provinces — in Saskatchewan, at 70.6, followed by New Brunswick, at 62.5.

Confidence in Prince Edward Island, which earned the highest score in June, fell sharply to 59.4, from 70.6 in June.

“These results show most small businesses appear to be remaining in defensive mode,” said Ted Mallett, CFIB’s vice president of research and chief economist. “We find the lowest optimism is in Quebec, as well as in the agricultural, transportation, hospitality and industrial sectors.”

Among businesses in the finance, insurance and realty sectors, confidence slipped to 58.5 in July, down from 60.8 in June.

Across all sectors, only 25% of business owners say they are performing better than three or four months ago, while 45% have seen their performance deteriorate. In terms of expectations for the months to come, business owners are not expecting strong performance.

“Looking ahead to expected performance in the next three or four months, the balance of opinion barely covers the break-even mark,” Mallett said.

He also noted that for the first time in July, full-time employment indicators have hit net negative. The survey found that 14% of business owners expect to hire full-time staff in the next few months, while 15% plan to reduce their numbers.