The consultancy firm announced Wednesday the conclusions of the fifth Business Sentiment Index survey, which was compiled on the opinions and forecasts of top managers in Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia.
“Since the last survey in (the third quarter of) 2010, the number of executives expecting improvement has remained largely stable (39%), while the percentage of pessimists dropped 20%, to 13%,” said George Mucibabici, Chairman of Deloitte Romania.
However, wider negative sentiment mainly regarding employment levels reflected in Romania’s composite index, which rose by only one point, to 115.
“(This is) a reflection of structural changes currently in progress or needed by the local business environment. The quality of the local labor force and a peripheral focus on innovation are two examples,” the company official added.
When asked about the outlook of labor force over the next 12 months, 58% of Romanian respondents said they would maintain employee levels, while 10% (compared to 23% in the third quarter of 2010) said they would hire more people.
In sync with general sentiment, Romanian managers are more pessimistic regarding the regulatory frame. The general opinion remains negative in the region, as the percentage of optimists dropped to 8%, from 18%. Similarly, only 10% of Romanian respondents believe the regulatory frame will be relaxed in the upcoming year, compared to 20% in the third quarter of 2010.
The results show that 64% of Romanian executives don’t know (16%) or have not unfolded local investment in research and development (48% – the highest percentage among the countries included in the survey) in 2010. In addition, 71% of respondents said their research and development budget will shrink over the next five years.