Mechanical engineering: good readings

The companies of the Italian mechanical engineering segment closed the first half of 2014 with positive results: compared to the same period the year previous, 83.9% of companies registered a growth or stability in  turnover and 75.8% an unchanged employment situation.

Orders enable the financial demands of nearly six companies out of ten to be satisfied and liquidity is regarded as sufficient or good by 87.4%. Reassuring results that lead 45.1% of entrepreneurs to declare themselves satisfied as to the run of their company and 44.5% moderately satisfied; only 10.4% declared they were totally dissatisfied. In the same way, there is faith in the second part of the year: six companies out of ten forecast a stable turnover while three out of ten expect an increase; on the employment side the situation should remain stable along with the order portfolio.
Turnover is on the up for companies that innovate (49.1% against 30.4% for those that don’t), who focus on the training of their own employees (48.7% against 18.5%) and that choose to internationalize (47% against 34%).

Relations with the Italian State and Public Administration are still a terrible bugbear: 89.8% of entrepreneurs consider bureaucracy as critical, 85.9% indicate fiscal aspects as penalising, 75.5% fear the delay in justice while 74.1% are apprehensive as to normative uncertainty.
(Source: MECSPE Observatory, realised by Senaf in the occasion of the eponymous international exhibition of itechnologies innovating the mechanical engineering and  subsupply sector, Parma, 26 to 28 March 2014)