Late payments to Hong Kong businesses have dropped to a two-year low, according to a survey by Coface Frontline.
Coface, a unit of France-based credit insurance and management services group, said 27.1 per cent of 1,428 local firms polled reported late payments in the past six months, its lowest level since the first quarter of 2003 and was slightly lower than 27.6 per cent in the third quarter. Payment default reports remain unchanged at 5 per cent, it said.
“We anticipate the situation to remain stable in 2005, during which Hong Kong enterprises should experience a similar level of late payments and defaults,' general manager Grace Wong said.
Confidence in the near future also improved dramatically with only 14.6per cent expecting tightening of credit terms in the next six months compared with the 35 per cent in the same period a year ago, Coface said.
