Thirty-eight percent of senior mangers around the world believe the economic crisis will end by the second quarter of next year,
Nonetheless, 40% of respondents, located in 17 of the 20 countries surveyed, said government stimulus money has not lifted the economy in their nation. Ten percent said their government hasn’t even started distributing stimulus money. Rather, the majority of executives said they would rather see direct tax cuts, tax incentives and a reduction in interest rates.
The executives said they are also paying close attention to the accessibility of financing, availability of credit from suppliers and customers’ own cash flow. Recently, their customers are taking less time to pay for goods and services, improving their cash flow and receivables management.
The executives also said that during the recession they have paid more attention to finding new markets and sales channels and improving customer service.
“The recession has had a big impact on the way many companies are doing business,” noted Isidoro Unda, chief executive officer of Atradius. “Businesses are paying more attention to managing their business risks and, as a result, they have been able to improve the performance of their business.”
