In the April survey of companies (Monthly Business Index – MIK), carried out jointly by the Polish Economic Institute and Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego, trade companies and the TFL industry recorded an increase in sales compared to last month. Service companies saw the biggest decline in sales. As many as 29% of them reported a decrease in sales.
An increase in the number of new orders month to month was recorded mainly by commercial companies (36%). It is the only industry in which the share of growing companies was higher than the number of enterprises with a recorded decline in new orders (18%). This is caused by the dynamically growing demand for products by consumers. The number of clients increased significantly due to the influx of refugees from Ukraine.
The trade industry has recorded large increases in the value of sales and the consequent increase in the number of new orders for goods. At the same time, it demonstrates high efficiency in maintaining harmonious deliveries, even in the period of abrupt, periodic increases in the demand for goods.
Trading companies are helped by new technologies that enable in-depth analysis of sales data and stock control. This allows them to limit the negative effects of possible breaks in the supply chains.
Nearly every fourth production company recorded a decrease in the number of new orders, and only 11% recorded an increase. This is a direct result of the reappearance of problems with the supply of raw materials, other materials for production and their rising prices.
The anxiety of manufacturing companies about future events is also growing. In April, as much as 77% of companies considered the uncertainty of the economic situation to be a large or very large barrier to their activities. The lower share of production companies with an increase in the number of new orders confirms the growing problems and anxiety about the future operating conditions in the industry.
Construction companies are afraid of interruptions in the supply of necessary materials, especially during a seasonal increase in new construction investments. There is also increasing anxiety about the labour shortage. The return of a significant number of Ukrainians working in Poland to their homeland has exacerbated this problem.
Similar problems resulting from the lack of employees are noted by TSL companies. In their case, there is also the problem of the possibility of further functioning of the enterprise, because of the limited availability of eastern markets due to sanctions. Increasing fuel costs are also a problem in this sector of the economy.
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