Businesses downgrade their performance expectations - NBU

This is evidenced by the business activity expectations index (BAEI), which the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) calculates on a monthly basis, Ukrinform reports.

“In November, businesses downgraded their views about their economic outlook. This is evidenced by the business activity expectations index (BAEI), which the NBU calculates on a monthly basis. In November 2021, the index was 49.8, down from 51.4 in October, dropping slightly below its neutral level for the first time in the last seven months (since May 2021). Surging energy prices, shortages of raw materials, higher production costs and an increase in COVID-19 cases, both in Ukraine and globally, weakened expectations in most of the surveyed sectors,” reads the report.

In particular, services companies had the strongest response to tighter quarantine restrictions, downgrading their expectations of their economic performance.

It is noted that companies in all sectors continued to report intentions to raise their selling prices on the back of higher raw material and supplies prices. In addition, companies downgraded their employment expectations – respondents in all sectors reported no intentions to expand their workforces. Construction companies had the most pessimistic employment expectations, while services companies retained their neutral expectations.

The survey was conducted between November 4 and November 23, 2021 among 385 companies. Out of the companies polled, 43.4% are industrial companies, 28.6% - companies in the services sector, 5.5% - construction companies; 33.2% of the respondents are large companies, 30.4% medium companies, and 36.4% small companies. 

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