Insights

How Australians Feel about the Future of Business: Part Two

This is the second part in our four-part series covering the Bankwest Future of Business 2017 Outlook Report released in January 2017.

This is the second part in our four-part series covering the Bankwest Future of Business 2017 Outlook Report released in January 2017. In the first part, we looked at the report’s scope and aims, as well as its insights into the sentiments of Australian businesses. Here, we summarise expectations of the next three months.

What do Australian businesses expect of business performance in the next three months?

The report surveyed Australian business owners about performance expectations in two areas: revenue and profit.

Where revenue is concerned, 46.4% of businesses expect growth during the next three months. Small businesses are less optimistic than medium businesses, with 33.3% expecting revenue growth, as opposed to 58.7%.

When it comes to profit, the figures are similar. Overall, 46.8% of businesses are looking forward to growth. However, only 35% of small businesses feel this way, in contrast with 58% of medium businesses.

Bankwest Future of Business 2017 Outlook Report - Medium business top three challenges

What do Australian businesses expect of business well-being in the next three months?

The report gauged expectations of well-being by asking business owners about cash flow. Altogether, 34.6% of businesses are expecting improvements in cash flow. However, this is true of only 28.4% of small businesses. Meanwhile, 40.5% of medium businesses have expectations of better cash flow.

How do Australian businesses feel about the Australian economy over the next three months?

Expectations of the Australian economy are more negative than those concerning business performance and well-being. The statistics are:

  • 23.8% of businesses believe the economy will grow
  • 28.2% think there will not be any change
  • 29.8% are convinced the economy will contract

In categorising these figures according to business size, the report found that 21% of small businesses are expecting the economy to grow, while 26.5% of medium businesses think the economy will grow.

Bankwest Future of Business 2017 Outlook Report - Small business top three opportunities

How do Australian businesses feel about the global economy over the next three months?

Overall, 23.4% of the businesses surveyed expressed an expectation that the global economy will grow during the next three months. Meanwhile, 30.8% reported no expectation of change and 24.4% stated a belief that the economy will contract. 18.5% of small businesses are expecting global economic growth, in contrast with 28% of medium businesses.

Find out more

If you found this summary helpful, read part one about business sentiment and keep an eye of for part three to discover more insights. Head to the Bankwest site to download the full Bankwest Future of Business 2017 Outlook Report.

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