Which sources do you reference to gain an insight into developments in the market? Here are a couple of investigations from the sector:
Credit Managers’ Index
USA
The Credit Managers’ Index stayed largely unchanged for the third consecutive month, though the CMI shows us negative and positive elements. The sales tumbled from 61.4 in September to 58.2 in November (lowest score of last year). This decline was also seen in the manufacturing and service sectors. Luckily the dollar collections improved marginally from 56.8 to 56.9 and even better news, the amount of credit extended moved from 61.9 to 62.4. Other results suggest that fewer companies are in financial distress, which is partly the result of an economic rebound and partly due to the fact that those companies in trouble months ago have either self-corrected or have gone out of business. For more information on the Credit Managers’ Index in USA,
click here.
UK
The results of the latest Credit Managers’ Index of Q2 2011 in the United Kingdom, revealed the lowest headline score in four quarters. This suggests that confidence levels are falling and companies are finding it harder to collect their cash. Also in the UK the confidence within in the Services and Manufacturing sectors have fallen. The “favourable” factors have fallen by 2.6 points to 61.4, but also the unfavourable factors are now negative. Days Sales Outstanding (DSO) are down with 11.5 points, overdues by 11.9 points and bad debt provision down with 3.3. points. Compared to the previous quarter, the unfavourable factors have dropped 4.5 points. For more information on the ICM UK Credit Managers' Index,
click here.
Atradius Payment Practices Barometer
In October the last results of the Atradius Payment Practices barometer were presented. When looking at the global economy, the economic slowdown remained a reality. In an environment where insufficient liquidity was cited as the prime determinant of payment delays, the impact on businesses has been that over 30% of the survey respondents’ invoices fell overdue, placing an unwelcome strain on cash flow. Here are some core results from the survey:
- Overall, 30% of the total value of B2B invoices was past due
- Approximately 25% of past due invoices were paid 31- 90 days after the due date (35% in Southern Europe).
- 18% of overdue invoices in Greece and 10% in Italy were paid more than 90 days after the due date
- Insufficient funds remained the main payment obstacle
If you want to know more about the Atradius Payment Practices Barometer or the other surveys/research Atradius performs,
click here.