Greece: payment practices improve amid brighter outlook

Optimism of Greek businesses polled for the Payment Practices Barometer is tempered by a sense of caution over any longer-term after-effects of the economic crisis. Greece: payment practices improve amid brighter outlook Greece should see GDP return to pre-pandemic levels by the end of 2022. However, this brighter outlook appears to be clouded by businesses' sense of caution over long-term after-effects of the crisis. Introduction Although Greece's economy will certainly be impacted by the significant reduction in tourist numbers during 2020 and 2021, other sectors including chemicals, consumer durables and electronics / ICT are showing signs of industries emerging from the effects of the pandemic recession. However, businesses' optimism is tempered by a sense of caution over any longer-term after-effects of the economic crisis. This may explain why in a country that still heavily favours cash sales, there are signs of a growing appetite for trade credit insurance. In the results of this year’s survey, this was particularly evident in  the consumer durables sector where a third of the businesses polled told us they plan to use credit insurance next year. Key takeaways from the report Businesses polled across Greece reported that nearly 40% of the total value of their B2B invoices were overdue. The total value of B2B sales that were still outstanding after 90 days and beyond remained stable at 7%. However, only 1% of these long outstanding sales were cashed in, with the remainder written-off as uncollectable. This  may explain why many businesses polled in Greece told us they increased the amount of time and resources employed, as well as costs incurred, in an attempt to collect overdue invoices, especially those long overdue. Looking into 2022, most of the Greek businesses we spoke to (69%) expressed optimism and predicted growth next year. A vast majority believed customer payment practices will improve and 43% told us they plan to offer trade credit more often next year, largely as a way to stimulate demand. Despite concerns over whether the pandemic could continue to hamper the rebound of the global economy, Greek businesses polled predicted a growth outlook. Reflecting on the impact of the pandemic on their business operations, 59% of businesses told us that they have permanently adopted remote working. A significant number also revealed they believe changes in customer demand may be long term, as well as an increased use of credit insurance next year. Interested in getting to know more? The Payment Practices Barometer report for Greece gives insights into B2B payment practices and businesses' approach to the management of customer credit risk in the following local industries: Chemicals Consumer durables Electronics/ICT For a complete overview, please download the full country report available in the Related documents section below. The Statistical Appendix and regional Payment Practices Barometer survey results are also available free to download. All content on this page is subject to our Disclaimer, available here.