August 2012
Featured in this insight: Business & enterprise, Chemicals
Survey suggests declining optimism in European chemical industry: According to the Ceresana Industry Monitor (CIM), carried out between July 2nd and July 15th 2012 among business from 41 countries, fewer members of the chemicals and plastics industry are optimistic about their business, as problems in Europe continue to hinder global trade.
According to the results, 30 percent of the companies interviewed felt their current business situation was good, showing a reduction in optimism compared to the spring results, when the percentage was at 40 percent.
Ceresana suggested that the banking crisis in the EU and the recession in southern Europe means the region is no longer a strong sales market for foreign produce. The survey also suggests that most of the reductions in workforces will take place in Europe, with 26.7 percent of companies in Western Europe and 15.8 percent in Eastern Europe saying they are expecting to have to reduce staff numbers.
However, Europe is not the only region in difficulty; the United States also saw its economic development decline.
The survey also looked at funding and asked companies how they rate opportunities for obtaining loans from credit institutes. A quarter felt opportunities were “good,” 29 percent said “poor” and one third stated that they were satisfied with the situation.
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