Stock markets are in turmoil; the North American venture capital market has dried up; the global economy could be on the brink of collapse.
Yet, talking to the people behind some of Atlantic Canada`s small startup companies, you wouldn`t know that they stand on the edge of the abyss.
If anything, the prevailing mood at Invest Atlantic, a Halifax forum that focused on how companies looking to grow can raise equity capital, was cautious optimism, not deep-seated gloom.
On one side, it`s the best of times as new multi-unit residential buildings shoot up across the Halifax skyline spurred by increased rental demand.
On the other side, it`s the worst of times with single-family housing sales and new housing starts pulled down by low employment growth, stagnant wages and high inflation.
"We`re seeing two very different things play out in the market this year," Matthew Gilmore, senior regional market analyst with Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp., said Tuesday.