SINGAPORE - The business outlook of Singapore's small and medium-sized enterprises has plunged and will deteriorate further from the coronavirus pandemic and the global economic slowdown triggered, going by a quarterly industry survey released on Thursday
SBF CEO Ho Meng Kit said:"These are unprecedented times for the business community. We're facing one of the worst outbreaks in history, unprecedented border closures of entire countries and growing uncertainty in the global financial markets. While the findings of the latest index reflect the broader sentiments, expectations and realities of our SMEs on the ground, the situation has since worsened.
SMEs in the retail and food and beverage sector felt the biggest drop in sentiment, while business services turned pessimistic on outlook for the first time since the start of the index. However, expectations around business expansion, capital investment, and hiring remain positive, suggesting that SMEs are adopting a wait-and-see approach to address the economic fallout from the ongoing virus outbreak, said the report.
"We do expect a deeper contraction in SME sentiment in the coming days and weeks. The reality on the ground is that SMEs are focused solely on resilience and sustainability to bridge the deepening effect of the economy on their survival," he added.