With a view to the proceeds – Kommersant
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The business activity of small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) continues to grow due to business optimism, according to the results of the April RSBI index (determined by the study of PSB, Opora Rossii and NAFI). In April, the indicator rose to its highest level since the summer of 2021, reaching 54.1 points after 53.5 points in March.
Such dynamics is ensured by the investment activity of SMEs. One-fifth of the surveyed enterprises reported on the expansion of their business, another 28% plan to increase investments in the near future. 8% of SMEs reduced their investments, another 4% intend to reduce them in the future (these are the minimum values since February last year).
The personnel policy of companies also testifies to the growth of investment activity: 12% of SMEs hired new employees, another 27% are ready to increase their staff in the near future. The availability of debt financing has decreased slightly, which may be due to the effect of a high base (this component of the index set records throughout 2022).
The investment driver is hopes for future revenue growth; a third of the respondents rely on it. Although the sales situation of some businesses has improved (35% of SMEs reported revenue growth versus 32% in March), deterioration is still recorded more frequently (40% in April and 47% in March). As a result, this component remains in the negative zone (46.2 points). According to Kirill Tikhonov, Vice-President of PSB, the growth of the RSBI partly reflects the calm perception of the situation in the economy by entrepreneurs, even despite the fact that the segment of small and medium-sized businesses continues to experience difficulties with sales.
The situation with sales most noticeably affected the well-being of medium and micro businesses. The first one feels more confident than other segments (60.9 points), which can be explained by clear prospects for demand – traditionally, the manufacturing business is concentrated here, actively involved in import substitution. The business activity of micro-businesses, which did not manage to recover from covid, for the first time since the beginning of 2020 moved into a growth zone (51.1 points) thanks to an improvement in the sales situation. In the services sector, business activity increased (to 54.6 points) due to the growth in sales and the availability of credit. The slowdown in business activity was demonstrated by small businesses, and in the sectoral context, by trade enterprises.
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