SMEs up the slope, but do not return to their pre-crisis activity
Wednesday, 01.07.2020
news-single-imgcaption" style="width:240px;">Certain restrictions continue to hamper the business of Swiss SMEs, respectively the propensity of their clients to invest. (Keystone)
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The easing of anti-coronavirus measures has given a breath of fresh air to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Switzerland. Despite this upturn, they have not yet returned to their pre-crisis activity, far from it, say Raiffeisen economists.
The PMI PME purchasing managers’ index published on Wednesday by the St. Gallen banking group rose to 53.3 points in June, compared to 37.4 points the previous month. The activity of the companies concerned thus increased for the first time since the crisis triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic.
This rebound does not mean that the storm has finally passed, warn the specialists of Raiffeisen, who stress the extent of the losses in recent months. In addition, certain restrictions continue to hamper the business of Swiss SMEs, respectively the propensity of their clients to invest.
The increase in the sub-indices “order books”, “production” or “employment” above the threshold of 50 points is to be regarded as a ray of hope, not more, according to the press release. (AWP)
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