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Excessive taxation is main difficulty facing SMEs in 2014
Excessive taxation alongside the inflation and the plunging domestic demand are the main difficulties facing the small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) in 2014, the chairman of the National Council of the Romanian Private Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises told a news conference on Tuesday.
Said Ovidiu Nicolescu: 'The issue of excessive taxation has been signalled this year by 58.06 percent of the total 1,569 enterprisers from across the country, who answered an internal poll conducted in March and April of 2014. The other two difficulties hitting the SMEs are the inflation (55.45 percent) and the plunging domestic demand (55.39 percent). The situation has changed a little from last year, when the main difficulty cited by the SMEs was the plunging domestic demand (70.8 percent) followed by excessive taxation (54.25 percent) and the inflation (50.27 percent). The fact the domestic demand has somewhat picked up is a good signal, but the strong presence of corruption, bureaucracy and excessive taxation should make the authorities ponder over the matter'.
As for the business opportunities, this year they have been represented by the rising domestic demand (63.48 percent), the assimilation of new products (60.93 percent) and entering new markets (42.77 percent). The opportunities cited by the small and medium-sized business a year ago included slightly different rates: the rising domestic demand at 64.67 percent, the assimilation of new products at 50.75 percent and entering new markets at 44.40 percent.
'The number of small and medium-sized businesses in Romania currently stands at only a third of the European average. Most Romanian SMEs are made up of 2.7 employees, with such a rate being similar to a majority of the European states; a higher level is being recorded in Germany, namely 4-5 employees', the Council chairman explained.