The latest Global Business Monitor study from Bibby Financial Services (BFS) and trade credit insurer Euler Hermes revealed that, for respondents, the ongoing trade war between the US and China, and Brexit were the top two concerns with regard to global economic growth.
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Other highlights from the report included:
- 29% of UK SMEs said they didn’t plan to invest during the remainder of 2019, compared with just 8% in the US
- 66% of UK and 72% of Irish SMEs were most concerned by Brexit
- almost two-fifths of Irish SMEs said they were now considering export markets beyond the UK in the wake of Brexit
- 51% of German SMEs felt that the US-China trade dispute posed the most substantial threat to global economic growth
“It’s evident that UK SMEs are anxious about investing over the coming months as a no-deal Brexit becomes a possibility,” said David Postings, global chief executive at BFS.
“This is damaging to the economy at a pivotal time for the country.”
Ludovic Subran, global chief economist at Euler Hermes, added: “No matter what the political outcome of the Brexit negotiation is, the scarring effect on SMEs is visible.
“We expect a technical recession at the turn of the year because of excessive contingency stockpiling, which will trigger a fall in production in the next six months.”
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