Gemischtes Bild für europäische Firmen, während die Kreditkrise voranschreitet.

France 

In France, company bankruptcies are expected to increase by 25% in 2009 compared to 2008, according to a study published in June by Eurler Hermers, a leading credit insurance firm. The number of business failures could hit the 73,000 mark which would be a historic high, exceeding the record of 64,800 set during the 1993 recession. 

With regard to late payments for SMEs, France is faring better than its European partners, according to a study by the Altares Institute. Late payment recorded for the first six months of 2009 show delays of 11.7 days compared to a European average of 15 days. The real estate, transport and retail sectors are worst affected, and face delays of more than 15 days. 

The Altares survey says France's smallest companies are suffering most from late payments. 60% of companies with between one and 250 employees reported delays in being paid, compared with just 21.5% of companies which have more than 5,000 staff. 

A new French law aimed at economic reform sets limits on late payments and is expected to provide a €22 billion boost for SMEs. 

UK 

Early signs of a potential recovery have been reported by a leading UK business group, which says confidence is beginning to return to the market. The Federation of Small Businesses reported an upturn in trade in its latest monthly survey, with the situation noticeably better than in the autumn of 2008 (EurActiv 09/07/09). 

Last year 40% of small businesses were highlighting the cost of finance as a major problem, but that figure has now fallen to 25% as the flow of credit gradually begins to ease. The situation in the UK appears out of step with the experience of SMEs across Europe, but will be seized upon as the first sign of green shoots in the retail lending market. 

Confidence is also on the rise in the UK with 57% of small firms saying they are reasonably optimistic for the future and a growing number of SMEs looking to invest in new products and more staff. However, the FSB has warned that the credit crunch continues to pose a threat to shops and pubs in rural villages. 

UK Finance Minister Alistair Darling said this week (14 July) that access to credit is key to the recovery, stressing the need to lend to SMEs as a matter of particular urgency. He said he will be meeting banks again shortly, and noted that the government has lending agreements with banks in which the state has substantial shareholdings. 

Czech Republic 

A survey by the Czech Chamber of Commerce in June showed worsening access to credit is forcing companies to cut costs. Three quarters of firms had to scale down their activities due to the lack of finance, and more than half postponed or cancelled planned investments. 

Cash flow problems have forced 25% of companies to shed staff or to sell some property. Half of all respondents to the survey declared that banks have become less willing to provide them with credit over the last three months. 

The Confederation of Industry of the Czech Republic stated in its June quarterly report that 92% of Czech industrial companies perceive the problem of late payments as more serious than the year before. Late payment penalties are now covered by Czech legislation. 

According to Tomáš Bartovský, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Czech government has launched a programme called 'Guarantees', which is designed to provide deposit guarantees to Czech industry. The one billion Czech koruny (€38, 631, 582) scheme has met with considerable success, and business groups want the ministry to broaden its scope to include the services and trade sectors. However, Bartovský told EurActiv that the government had no intention of doing that. 

Slovakia 

According to the National bank of Slovakia, the number of enterprise loans increased slightly in May 2009, due to an increased volume of lending for property and other loans. However, investment and operating loans decreased in May 2009 compared to the previous month. 

As part of a series of measures to support SMEs, the Slovak Guarantee and Development Bank (Slovenská záručná a rozvojová banka; SZRB), has signed a contract with commercial banks to provide rapid bank guarantees. Between January and April 2009, SZRB provided 292 bank guarantees to the tune of €17 million as well as a further €46.5 million in loans. This represents an increase of more than €24 million on the same period last year. 

According to an analysis of the impact of the global economic crisis on SMEs by the National Agency For the Development of Small And Medium Enterprises (NADSME), only 2% of SMEs feel access to credit is a serious problem. 

However, late payments remain an issue for Slovakian SMEs, with 65% of small firms admitting to experiencing liquidity problems as a result. In response, companies are postponing payments to their own suppliers, instead seeking bank loans and selling assets. 

Jozef Hudák of the Economy Ministry said the government was not keen to intervene in disputes between suppliers and consumers, and the problem of late payments could be solved by borrowing. The government has increased access to credit and simplified the tax and VAT system. 

In April, the EIB approved a credit line of €50 million to the Slovak Guarantee and Development Bank, which will be used to support SMEs investing in several sectors, especially industry and services. 

Italy 

One in three Italian enterprises has had difficulty accessing bank loans in the first half of 2009. The credit crisis is costing SMEs €13.7 billion per year, with 30 business failures per day recorded between January and June 2009. 

In order to support companies in trouble and guarantee credit lines, some associations, such as Confimpresa, have launched a strategy of guarantee schemes in association with small and regional banks. 

Payment delays remain a major thorn in the Italian government's side. According to the Italian Banking Association (ABI), public authorities owe SMEs between €50 billion and €60 billion. 

On 26 June, the government launched new measures to speed up payments by the public sector. Italian Finance Minister Giulio Tremonti announced the creation of a fund of €23 billion to pay back enterprises awaiting payment. Confindustria, the Italian industry organisation, welcomed the government's proposal, but remarked: "We're trying to understand when and how the debts will be paid." 

Italy has received the third largest amount of loans from the EIB, after Spain and Germany. In May, the EIB, ABI and Confindustria signed a framework agreement to make extensive use of the instruments created by the EIB, with particular emphasis on the measures to simplify EIB loans for SMEs. 

In addition, the document paves the way for full cooperation between the three institutions in encouraging the swift deployment of the credit lines made available by the EIB to intermediary banks, thereby helping to improve and standardise the related reporting procedures. 

Hungary 

As part of major reforms designed to restore balance to the Hungarian economy, new tax legislation was signed at the end of June, and a separate property tax law passed through the Hungarian Parliament. The new legislation will have a significant impact on small firms. 

Taxation for SMEs will be simplified and, from the beginning of 2010, every company will be allowed to conduct its accounting in the common European currency. It also defines easier conditions for tax allowances related to business development. 

SMEs in Hungary have found it difficult to access credit, but new forms of financing leases will protect financial institutions from liquidation by giving the leasing institution ownership of leased real estate. This is expected to provide more security for lenders, and give SMEs access to credit. 

The resources of the European Investment Bank have been slow to reach companies in Hungary. In May, with the help of Erste Bank Hungary, €40 million started to flow to Hungarian SMEs which are implementing projects on environmental protection, energy efficiency and infrastructure development. However, Erste Bank officials told EurActiv that the amount available was so small that it ran out just few days after it was opened. 

As a result of the government's efforts to stabilise the economy, investors are now beginning to prefer Hungary over former favourite Poland. Deutsche Bank analyst Angus Halkett yesterday told Bloomberg that the reason for this lies, ironically, in the fact that Hungary was the first country to need to ask the IMF, the World Bank and the EU for help. 

"Hungary's government is clearly doing everything it can to try to prevent a further crisis and put through the reforms that are required by both the EU and the IMF," London-based Halkett said. "Poland in many ways is going in the opposite direction to Hungary," he added. 

Bulgaria 

The pessimistic forecasts about the dire impact of the global economic crisis have become a daily reality in Bulgaria. Along with rising unemployment, a growing number of companies are going bankrupt due to financial problems. 

The number of companies which have gone out of business due to an inability to pay their bills reached 118 in the first three months of 2009, compared to 67 in the same period the previous year. According to the Bulgarian Industrial Association (BIA), it is easier for enterprises with foreign capital to meet their financial engagements and to provide funding for their branches experiencing serious problems. 

However, many Bulgarian companies are unable to complete their orders, because the commercial banks are refusing them access to credit. The businesses which are most likely to go bankrupt are in the construction and tourist sectors, and in the metalwork sector. 

Difficulty in accessing credit is exacerbated by the growing problem of late payments. Statistics show that the number of late state payments has hit 70% per year, seriously decreasing the real profits of companies. As the implementation of the Late Payment Directive is still limited, most enterprises are seriously affected by the problem. 

To stimulate investments by SMEs, the Bulgarian government provided 500 million leva (approximately €250 million) for credit through the Bulgarian Development Bank. However, the money is being granted to businesses only slowly, and to date only 200 million leva have been used. 

Recently the European Investment Fund guaranteed 400 million leva for Bulgarian SMEs, but the money is being loaned through commercial banks and this appears to be causing problems. Despite the EU executive's insistence that SMEs are given fast and easy access to liquidity, the banks either refuse to provide credit for struggling companies or offer money at high rates of interest. 

Ireland 

The economic situation in Ireland continues to worsen despite a range of measures introduced at national and European level. The government, as part of a multi-billion euro recapitalisation plan for Irish banks, requires an increase in lending to SMEs. A new lending code was introduced earlier this year, but a survey by business groups suggest most bank staff are unaware of the regulation. 

Meanwhile, the billions of euro made available by the EIB are apparently not getting through to those who need it most. The Irish Small and Medium Enterprises Association (ISME) has said banks in Ireland are ignoring the funds made available by the Luxembourg-based bank, effectively blocking a channel of funding to businesses (EurActiv 08/07/09). However, Irish banks have said these claims are exaggerated. 

As a result, a survey by a corporate restructuring consultancy said 733 Irish firms had gone bust this year, predicting that 1,600 would be out of business by the end of 2010. 

Commerce Minister Billy Kelleher spent July touring the country meeting with banks, businesses, state agencies and tourist boards to address the ongoing reluctance of financial insitutions to lend to companies (EurActiv 01/07/09).