German CFOs Expect Return to Pre-Crisis Revenues This Year

(Bloomberg) -- German business executives are confident that their own companies will overcome the pandemic crisis this year even as coronavirus restrictions and a slow vaccine rollout continue to weigh on the overall economy.

According to a Deloitte survey of 140 chief financial officers at large German firms, 43% have already seen sales recover, and another 23% say they will do so by December. Over half of the surveyed businesses are planning to ramp up investments as a result of the outlook, with companies in consumer goods, machinery, and export-oriented sectors expressing some of the greatest optimism.

“A large majority of companies have left the acute crisis mode -- and in some cases even the recovery mode -- and are now concerned with shaping the future after the pandemic,” according to Deloitte chief economist Alexander Boersch.

While German executives are particularly hopeful about strong growth in China and the U.S., they were most pessimistic about the current situation and outlook in the euro zone, according to the survey conducted in the second half of March.

The recovery in the 19-nation bloc is lagging behind other advanced economies, in part because of a less immediate fiscal boost. Countries are still awaiting the ratification of a joint 750-billion-euro ($890 billion) recovery package.

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