Optimism for SMEs strengthens, but investment is still cautiously planned

The negative impact of the epidemic appears to be slowly easing among domestic SMEs, as the number of people whose turnover has decreased compared to the second wave has decreased, as well as the proportion of people who have been adversely affected by the pandemic. Nevertheless, developments are only modestly planned: according to first-quarter research by the K&H SME Confidence Index, companies’ willingness to invest continues to decline, which has been further strengthened by the epidemic situation. The caution of SMEs may also be justified by the rapidly changing exchange rate, which hampers the business of a third of firms.