Supply bottlenecks are significantly impacting all areas of the SME sector

The German economy will grow at a significantly slower pace this year than was forecast just a few months ago. This is due in part to supply bottlenecks for materials and inputs, which have also affected broad areas of the SME sector. Shortages have impacted nearly half of all small and medium-sized enterprises and almost 80% of manufacturing and construction firms.

As a consequence, production has been disrupted and companies are unable to meet delivery deadlines, are forced to decline customers’ orders and adjust prices. Around one in four SMEs have to pass on to their customers the price increases for raw materials such as steel, timber or plastic and inputs such as microprocessors, which have in part been considerable. The impact on employment has been rather minor so far. Nevertheless, only few businesses believe the supply bottlenecks will be resolved quickly.

Supply bottlenecks are significantly impacting all areas of the SME sector(PDF, 165 KB, non-accessible)

Press release