German companies signal improved business sentiment
GERMAN companies are expecting their prospects to improve, according to the results of a global survey released by the GermanPhilippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GPCCI).
The GPCCI said the World Business Outlook report for Fall 2022 released on Wednesday found that 53% of participants expect the situation to improve for their companies, higher than the Fall 2021 (32%) and Spring 2022 (47%) survey results.
Some 41% of survey participants expect their situation to remain unchanged while 6% forecast it to worsen.
According to the GPCCI, the survey included 68 companies involved in the Philippine market in fields like manufacturing, construction, trade, and services.
Of the Philippine segment of the survey, 61% of respondents expect their business to improve in the next 12 months while 13% expect conditions to deteriorate.
Some 39% described their prospects over the next 12 months in the Philippines as satisfactory, while 44% forecast conditions to remain unchanged. Some 50% said they plan to maintain their current staffing levels.
“We are glad to see that companies still (expect) a better business situation in the Philippines despite growing global economic impediments,” GPCCI Executive Director Christopher Zimmer said.
The three biggest risks identified by respondents for the next 12 months include supply chain disruptions (56%), energy prices (50%), and exchange rates (43%).
Philippine locators described the three main advantages of being based here as the skilled workforce (54%), labor costs (48%), and supplier network (32%).
“With the increasing global impacts of the energy crises and supply chain disruptions, the German business community is considering looking for new suppliers and relocating their production to boost operations,” GPCCI President Stefan Schmitz said.
“We ask the new government to take advantage of this opportunity by using the policy reforms to attract more foreign direct investment inflows in the coming years,” he added. —