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06/04/2013
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Italy: Company payment practices worsen

Italy: Company payment practices worsen
The Italian "business model" stuck in a vicious circle

   With one of the most industrialised economies in the Eurozone,Italyhas seen 7 consecutive quarters of GDP contraction. The level of activity declined by -2.4% in 2012, and is expected to contract by -1.7% in 2013 (compared with -0.6% for the Eurozone). Household consumption, suffering due to the fall in purchasing power and high unemployment, is falling. In the long-term, growth will be vulnerable to the extremely weak levels of activity and a low rate of innovation.

 

   A favourable export dynamic has been unable to offset the contraction in domestic demand. Lacking the resources to finance investments, Italian companies are losing significant world market share. They are trapped in a vicious circle: the loss of competitiveness – price and quality – leads to reduced margins which, in turn, hinders the ability to improve competitiveness and therefore restore margins.

  

An increase in non-payments accentuated by a number of factors, in addition to the recession

   With these vulnerabilities, Coface has noted a marked worsening in the payment behaviour of Italian companies. These companies have traditionally had a higher rate of non-payments than those in other European countries and since the start of the crisis this gap has widened. In 2007, the rate was 3 times greater than inFrance, it is now 7 times higher.

 

   An analysis carried out by the economists at Coface highlighted the origins of this worrying trend.

 

  • The economic environment is not the only factorbehind the rate of non-payments inItaly. Even if the Italian growth rate was identical to that of its neighbours, this rate would still be higher.
  • Whilst their levels of profitability and indebtedness are within the European average, Italian companies are facing a record decline in their margins, with a knock-on effect in terms of their ability to finance their investments. The level of      dependency of companies on bank credit, at a time when Italian banks are becoming less generous in terms of its availability, given the deterioration in the quality of their assets, is therefore a contributory factor to these current problems.
  • The risk of company insolvencies inherent in these cash flow problems is made worse by thedominance of small companieswithin the Italian economic fabric (95% of companies have fewer than 10 employees), a much higher proportion than in the rest of Europe. Increasingly precarious, these small companies are experiencing a decline in their levels of productivity.
  • An other Italian particularity is the lack of payment punctuality within the public sector. Thetradition of very late payment within the Italian public sector(170 days inItaly, compared with 60 days inFrance, 135 in Portugal and 159 in Greece) is therefore seriously weakening the foundations of companies.

     "Coface has revised its 2013 growth forecasts forItalydownwards to -1.7%. The marked worsening in payment behaviour of companies we have been seeing since the start of the crisis is not solely a result of the current economic difficulties. It arises from structural problems, including the preponderance within the economic fabric of extremely precarious small companies and the very long payment period within the public sector. The decision of the Italian government to deal with some of these delays is good news. The country also has a considerable advantage: a varied specialisation adapted to meet the demand from the dynamic emerging economies. However only profound reforms will enable it to capitalise on this significant potential”, explains Yves Zlotowski, Chief Economist at Coface.

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Plamen Dimitrov

 
Plamen Dimitrov
Country Manager
Tel.: +359 2 821 37 71
E-mail: plamen.dimitrov@coface.com 
 
 
Todor Tsvetanov
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E-mail: todor.tsvetanov@coface.com
 
 
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