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Donohoe warns worsening economic outlook likely to result in budget deficit this year

Minister for Finance Pascal Donohoe. “These figures suggest that, while companies have indeed managed to adjust to the realities of the pandemic, this adjustment for many reasons has not been enough to avoid companies experiencing losses,”Mr Makhlouf said. “Policymakers have acted to support vulnerable businesses and, thankfully, the pandemic has not yet been characterised by widespread company failures, owing to the unprecedented level of direct fiscal support and creditor forbearance that is in the system,” he said, while noting the important role the SME sector as a...

The research also shed light on how effectively SMEs have cut their overheads in the face of a curtailed trading environment, noting that company expenditure fell by 8.5 per cent on average, with 40 per cent of companies cutting their spending. Over 36 per cent of firms made a loss, while another 30 per cent “broke even” in 2020, it said. “These figures suggest that while companies have indeed managed to adjust to the realities of the pandemic, this adjustment for many reasons has not been enough to avoid companies experiencing losses,”Mr Makhlouf said. “Policymakers ...