Slovak companies invest only half as much as firms in the EU

Slovak companies invested only half as much relative to revenue last year as firms in the EU, the CEE region and globally, according to a KPMG and FinStat study of more than 15,000 companies. Median capital expenditure reached 1.6% of revenue, compared with 3-4% abroad. Total investment fell 8% to €11.9bn last year. Revenue growth slowed in five of eight sectors, and automotive revenue fell for a second straight year, by 2.5%. Profitability held steady, however, with the EBITDA margin rising to 10.3% in IT and slipping slightly to 5.2% in automotive. More than half of companies carry no debt. Promising segments with growth potential include defense, energy, health and senior care, as well as AI and automation.

(hnonline.sk, pravda.sk)