Small and medium-sized business owners across Europe believe their organization will fully recover from the economic effects of the Covid-19 pandemic this year. For the wider economy, most think recovery will take up to two years, while others believe it might take longer.
This is according to a new report from the SME funding platform CapitalBox, which states that businesses in the agriculture industry are most optimistic about 2021. Real estate, business services and food & drink industries are also quite optimistic about the months ahead.
The least optimistic industries, according to the report, are healthcare, wholesale, retail and franchising.
When it comes to the geographical breakdown, businesses in Finland are most optimistic about the future, while those in Spain aren’t exactly looking forward to 2021. SMEs in the UK sit in the middle, with 50 percent of the respondents hopeful about the future.
This optimism, CapitalBox claims, comes from how much trust SMEs place in their governments. More than half (53 percent) stated they are certain their governments will continue supporting them as they move into 2021. Businesses in Finland are most confident in their government’s support, while those in Spain are the opposite.
“The pandemic continues to have a big impact on businesses and economic recoveries around the globe, and there is certainly a bumpy road ahead to get there,” said Scott Donnelly, CEO of CapitalBox. “SMEs in Europe, however, are confident that this new year will bring positive changes, and that their businesses will return to growth. As the backbone of many economies, it is great to see SMEs being optimistic about the future and the ‘new normal’, putting effort into getting back on track.”
