Small- and medium-size enterprise (SME) confidence was down on the month according to the latest business confidence report of research institute Ecostat. The Top-100 confidence index was 47% in July, down form 53% in June and the lowest level recorded since December 2001.
A poll of Hungarian SMEs also showed a near 3 percentage point drop in the confidence index from 47.6% in June to 44.9% in July. Although similar levels of confidence indices have been common in the past year the July figure still exceeds all indices recorded between November 2002 and March 2003.
The SME index has shown more volatility than that of large companies, Ecostat notes, but following a decline in June, the further drop in July indicates a break in the upward trend. Hungarian macroeconomic news and the failure of international markets to show an upturn have dimmed these companies' view of their own market prospects in the short term.
