Rising costs for energy and raw materials are becoming more and more a burden for German small and medium-sized enterprises, according to Handelsblatt. “Above all, the extremely sharp rise in prices of many raw materials and intermediates as well as ongoing supply difficulties are causing growing concerns and risks to small and medium-sized enterprises,” DZ Bank and BVR said in a statement. latest research on small and medium-sized enterprises, which is available to Deutsche Presse-Agentur. “As a result, the vast majority of SMEs feel compelled to raise their selling prices.”
More than 80% of just over 1,000 companies surveyed – and therefore more than ever since the autumn 2013, when this issue was first raised in the survey – are concerned about the extremely high energy and materials.
According to the data, never since the start of the survey in 1995 did so many companies intend to increase their prices: 69% of SMEs in Germany intend to increase their prices in the next six months, while less than 2% intend to reduce them.
While companies are increasingly assessing the coronavirus pandemic as a business risk, the war in Ukraine and related economic turmoil are fueling the climate in the German media. Meanwhile, the number of pessimists is predominant, the survey concludes.
Business expectations have not only fallen since the previous autumn survey, but SMEs in all sectors – with the exception of the electrical and chemical, pharmaceutical and plastics industries – are also assessing the current business situation as weaker overall this spring than than six months ago.
“The many uncertainties in the market mean that SMEs want to maintain liquidity in the business,” explained Uwe Berghaus, a member of DZ Bank’s corporate client board. “At the same time, we need a real investment attack. Especially when it comes to the issue of the century, sustainability and technological innovation, companies need to put money in their hands now in order to remain competitive in the future.”
A ray of hope according to the estimates of DZ Bank and the Bundesverband der Deutschen Volksbanken und Raiffeisenbanken (BVR): SMEs managed to close 2021 with stable business indicators. “Strong balance sheet quality is a solid starting point for SMEs,” said BVR board member Andreas Martin. “This makes me optimistic that companies will eventually cope well with the second global crisis in a row.”
Source: Capital
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