2023 is predicted for the country’s SMEs to be almost as bleak as it was in 2021, the first year after the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.
More than 4 in 10 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Finland plan to lay off workers in 2023, and around 10% consider bankruptcy likely in the coming year, according to a report by the Confederation of Finnish Industry (EK) released today.
2023 is predicted for the country’s SMEs to be almost as bleak as it was in 2021, the first year after the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.
According to the report, 35% of SMEs estimated that demand will decline and that investment will shrink further in the new year. About 25% of companies with an international presence predict that foreign trade will register a decline in 2023.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine has caused the prices of raw materials and energy to rise significantly, forcing many companies to resort to cost-cutting solutions, said Jari Huovinen, an analyst at EK. The successive crises have exhausted the endurance limits of many Finnish SMEs, which have fallen into a dire situation, notes Huovinen.
More pessimistic are the small and medium-sized enterprises in the eastern and northern parts of the country, since 44% and 43%, respectively, predict a contraction in demand in 2023. There are approximately 84,500 small and medium-sized enterprises in all of Finland.
RES-EMP
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