“I am not making any forecasts. Surveys by specialized organizations show there are many expectations for the global situation to become more and more difficult in 2012 and 2013. I think the peak of the crisis has not reached us yet, but it will in 2012,” Stanciu said at a conference discussing small and medium-sized enterprises organized by ACCA, the world organization of chartered accountants.
“We are cautious and it is a good thing we can know about it beforehand and that companies can rethink their business and streamline in terms of costs and services. We can see the glass half full – there’s surely room for innovation and for brave entrepreneurs.”
She expects bankruptcies to continue considering companies are no longer making profit because of the drop in demand, but the speakers at the event, regardless of whether they came from the public or the private sector, did not focus as much on the negative statistics but on the incentives SMEs get now and on how to improve this sector.
Stanciu brought up the survey presented by Oana Dasca, representative of the National Council for Small and Medium-Sized Private Enterprises in Romania, during the event. The survey shows that over half of the companies believe the crisis peak will be reached in 2012. The main problems of the economy are the decline of domestic demand (by over 60%), excessive taxation, red tape, low access to loans, as the answers of the representatives of companies in Romania show.
(English version by Loredana Fratila-Cristescu)