Despite the accumulation of economic risks in recent months, Swiss small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) remain positive regarding the progress of their business and are now considering sustainability, according to a study by Raiffeisen.
While the war in Ukraine, rising prices and difficulties in the supply of energy and raw materials are worrying many Swiss companies, most are frankly optimistic regarding the evolution of their economic situation, according to the latest study on SMEs published Wednesday by Raiffeisen.
It was qualified as “good” to “very good” by nearly three quarters (73%) of the participants, but the assessment differs greatly according to their size. The share of optimists drops to 52% for companies whose annual turnover is less than 1 million francs, while it peaks at 84% for those making more than 10 million.
More than half of respondents (56%) reported rising revenue over the past 12 months, and nearly two-thirds (63%) expect this to be the case for the current fiscal year as well. Only 8% of the companies surveyed consider that they are “not prepared for crises and therefore encounter difficulties or be unable to react appropriately”.
For Roger Reist, head of corporate clients and member of the management of Raiffeisen Switzerland, the resilience of Swiss SMEs which has shown itself during the coronavirus pandemic has been further strengthened. It is therefore not surprising to see them “also meeting new challenges with remarkable ease”.
Inflation and shortage and personnel
During a press conference in Zurich, however, he underlined the deterioration of the economic context over the last three months, as evidenced by the latest Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for SMEs published at the end of August by Raiffeisen, which shows a marked decline in the Production and Orders components. “I think we would have significantly different results if we conducted the same survey today,” conceded Roger Reist.
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However, the main economic risks mentioned by entrepreneurs for the next twelve months have evolved considerably compared to the last update.
Unsurprisingly, the high prices of energy and raw materials come first (84%), whereas they were mentioned by only 31% of respondents in 2021 and only 7% in 2020. The availability of raw materials (63%) propelled itself to second place of concern (10% in 2020) ahead of access to qualified personnel (44%).
>> Read more: Inflation and shortages, a “toxic cocktail” that weakens growth
Relations with the European Union (EU), the pandemic, interest rates and even currency volatility have been relegated to the background. For the fifth edition of its SME study, Raiffeisen Switzerland compiled data from 565 companies between mid-May and mid-June.
>> Also listen to the episode of the Point J podcast “Inflation: how it affects us in Switzerland”:
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