This survey was completed in Q4 2019, since when the disruption caused by the Covid-19 outbreak has caused significant changes and heightened uncertainty. Nonetheless, we believe that understanding the trends over a longer period (this is the 11th edition) can be of interest to businesses, regulators and policy-makers. Thinking forward to the next survey later in 2020, we will be able to analyse what has changed.
The main message of the latest survey is that confidence about the economic outlook and the wider business environment has now been falling for two years among Central Europe’s leading finance professionals. However, more than 80% still expected their company revenues to grow or stay the same over the next year and close to three-quarters (74%) are either more optimistic about their companies’ financial prospects or hold the same views as they did six months ago.
These are some of the headline findings of this, the 11th Deloitte Central Europe CFO survey report, which again indicates how CFOs across our region tend to be more confident about the future performance of their own businesses than that of the regional economy as a whole.
It is only right to point out here that the survey was carried out between September and December of 2019. This, of course, was before anyone had ever heard of Covid-19 or had the faintest suspicion of the pandemic that was to come and disrupt the performance and prospects of CE companies and economies as a whole.
Gavin Flook
CFO Programme Leader
Deloitte Central Europe
