KfW Internationalisation Report 2022

The war in Ukraine has caused new disruptions to global supply chains, which were already under severe pressure from the coronavirus pandemic. Small and medium-sized enterprises also remain under great strain from supply bottlenecks. Particularly hard hit are the SMEs that source raw materials, intermediate inputs or services from abroad – especially from China, Russia and the United Kingdom. As a result of the material shortages, one in four SMEs have had to raise their prices. Supply bottlenecks remain a major driver of inflation. The coronavirus pandemic and supply chain disruptions have also made a mark on Germany’s exports and thus on the international turnover of small and medium-sized enterprises. In 2020 they plummeted by around 11%. At EUR 533 billion, they were at the lowest level in more than ten years. In 2021 the international turnover of small and medium-sized enterprises recovered slightly but remained below pre-crisis levels. There is great uncertainty as to how things will develop.

KfW Internationalisation Report 2022(PDF, 1 MB, non-accessible)

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