Survey | 7 out of 10 do not see substantial support for SMEs from TIF announcements
Source: Tornos News
59.8% negatively assess the measures announced by Prime Minister K. Mitsotakis during the 89th TIF, for two out of three citizens of Attica the income is not enough for the month and 73.1% do not see any substantial support for SMEs.
These are the main conclusions of a large survey conducted on behalf of the Athens Chamber of Commerce by the company MRB in the Prefecture of Attica, immediately after the government announcements at the TIF regarding the support measures.
The following are the main conclusions of the research…
Evaluation of Announcements at the TIF
Residents of the Prefecture of Attica positively judge the measures announced by Prime Minister K. Mitsotakis at a rate of 28.7%, while 59.8% judge them negatively.
At the same time, 12% of the citizens of the Prefecture of Attica believe that the measures address the current problems of everyday life to a Very Large and Quite a degree. This percentage must also take into account the 40% who state that the announcements of the TIF to a Small degree address the problems of citizens. The percentages are slightly better in terms of the evaluation of the measures for the positive impact they will have on the country’s economy.
Economic Daily Life of Citizens
The majority of citizens see the economy in stagnation or deterioration; the climate of distrust permeates all the residents of the Prefecture of Attica, to a greater or lesser extent.
For 2 out of 3 citizens in the Prefecture of Attica, their income is not enough even for a month. More specifically, 66% of respondents stated that their income is enough for 3 out of 4 weeks of the month, while 32.2% is enough for the first 15 days of the month. There is a 23.9% of respondents who state that they can comfortably meet their monthly expenses, while 7.7% also have the ability to save.
The spending cuts are focused on flexible expenses such as entertainment, recreation, but also on basic categories where a respectable percentage of household income is allocated, such as food/essentials and energy and fuel. In this context, citizens’ vacations have not been unaffected. Approximately 1 in 2 (45%) of respondents stated that both the duration and quality of their vacations have been affected.
73.1% of the residents of the Prefecture of Attica do not see any substantial support for SMEs from the announcements of the TIF.
The main problems of SMEs are:
Reduced purchasing power of households -> 55.9%
High operating costs -> 45.9%
Debts to banks/public -> 43.1%
Lack of liquidity -> 38.5%
Thus, SMEs in the Prefecture of Attica feel multifaceted pressure. The reduction of VAT on food gathers universal acceptance (72.9%), revealing the priority for immediate measures in the household basket.
The President of the Athens Chamber of Commerce, Yiannis Hatzitheodosiou, states: “The findings of the research conducted by MRB on behalf of the Athens Chamber of Commerce, justify the positions we expressed after the announcements of the measures and especially regarding the absence of substantial support for small and medium-sized enterprises.
The data show the steps that need to be taken from now on. And these must focus on the reductions in the prices of products and services but also on the actions required to further strengthen the purchasing power of citizens and on the support of SMEs. Only some reductions in direct taxes are not enough to improve the climate in the market.”
The original article: belongs to Tornos News .
