Swedish small businesses continue to invest in their operations, according to new statistics from fintech company Froda. As a result of the challenging external environment, there is also a shift in entrepreneurs investing more consciously rather than increasing overall liquidity, compared to previous years.
The company now presents new figures from the third quarter of the year, showing how small businesses are choosing to invest in their operations. The statistics show that the three categories that are increasing the most compared to the same period last year are covering unforeseen expenses (27.5%), investments in inventory (18.2%) and investments in machinery (5.5%).
- We see that many continue to invest in their businesses. Given the impending recession, the large increase in purchases of inventories and machinery is interesting. A likely explanation may be the dramatic price increases we have seen during the year, which motivates companies to make planned purchases and investments sooner rather than later," says Olle Lundin, CEO of Froda.
The figures also show that small businesses have a reduced need to cover general liquidity. The category has decreased by 11 percent compared to Q2 and as much as 23.7 percent since the same period last year.
- The fact that the need to raise external working capital has decreased may indicate that small businesses are making more conscious investments ahead of an impending recession and trying to keep their debt down. At the same time, we see a large increase in the need to cover unforeseen expenses. This is probably linked to the large general price increases in society, not least in the energy sector and the increased costs of purchases from abroad," concludes Olle Lundin.
About the statistics
Every quarter, Froda compiles statistics showing what Swedish small businesses invest in the last quarter. The statistics come from Froda's databases and are based on information about thousands of companies.
Contingencies
+ 27.5% compared to the previous year.
+ 37.4% compared to the previous quarter.
Machinery
+ 5.5% compared to the previous year.
+ 30.8% compared to the previous quarter.
Purchases of stocks
+ 18.2% compared with the previous year.
- 9.9% compared with the previous quarter.
General liquidity/working capital
- 23.7 percent compared to the previous year.
- 11.0 percent compared to the previous quarter.
Seasonal investments
- 0.5% compared with the previous year.
+ 12.7% compared with the previous quarter.
Posted
October 24, 2022
