Finance bosses’ concerns: Fear of economic crisis

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In the spring, the chief financial officers of many large companies were still optimistic about economic prospects. However, this positive attitude has now disappeared.

This is the key finding of a survey conducted by consulting firm Deloitte of 131 CFOs from 17 countries, including Switzerland.

At the top of the list of concerns is economic weakness. Accordingly, CFOs surveyed assess that the economic situation of Switzerland and its most important trading partners is much more negative than before. 22 percent expect an economic crisis. After all, 41 percent still expect economic growth to continue.

Switzerland is doing relatively well. Expectations for trading partners Germany (65 percent negative or very negative) and China (65 percent negative or very negative) are much more pessimistic.

Worse job prospects

In addition to the pessimistic economic outlook for the overall economy, companies also evaluate their own developments more negatively. This trend is confirmed when asked about priorities for the next six months. Cost management is clearly the priority.

Labor shortages and ongoing inflation remain significant concerns. There is also more focus on cybersecurity. These are the biggest areas of concern:

1. Economy/weak demand
2. labor shortage
3. inflation
4. Price/cost/margin pressure
5. Exchange rate risks
6. Monetary policy/interest rate environment
7. Internal company issues
8. Financing problems
9. Cyber ​​security
10. Geopolitical risks

“The combination of weak demand, labor shortages and inflation is an unusual situation and puts pressure on corporate confidence,” analyzes Alessandro Miolo, Audit and Assurance Manager, Managing Partner at Deloitte Switzerland. Although the Swiss market has proven to be stable and crisis-proof in international comparison, global economic uncertainties and the strong Swiss franc pose major challenges for the country.

Source :Blick