Editorial|Faith in economic growth still has to be built on wishful thinking.
KAfter the ground work of the Ministry of Finance, the government of the Union will start preparing next year’s budget, the ministers would be relieved if there were positive information available about the development of the Finnish economy. There are hints of something better, but surveys and measurements still tell a dark message.
On Thursday, Teknologiateollisuus published its survey, which tells how the companies responsible for Finnish exports are doing. The survey can be summed up like this: it’s not going well, but maybe it will clear up soon.
In the period from January to April, the turnover of techno companies was eight percent lower than a year earlier at the same time. No new orders have come in as expected. The value of the order book has shrunk for five consecutive quarters.
The weak situation has started to be reflected in the number of personnel. At the end of June, technology companies employed a thousand fewer people than at the end of March. At the end of June, 13,000 people were subject to layoffs. Compared to the economic cycle, the reductions are small.
Judging from the survey, companies in the industry hope that life will start to win at the end of the year. The belief in the better is based on two things: the green transition can bring new investments to Finland and the drop in interest rates will refresh the economy.
Interest rates are going down, but the long list of considered climate investments in Finland is turning into real investments very slowly. Partly this is because the investment planning was based on the profitability calculations of the zero interest rate world. Interest rates are no longer at zero, but on the other hand, they are not as high as they were a few months ago.
Waiting for better times starts to resemble Samuel Beckett’s absurd play Tomorrow he will come. The plot of the play is summarized that the characters Vladimir and Estragon kill time under a tree and wait for the mysterious Mr. Godot to arrive. He won’t arrive.
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