The Atradius Payment Practices Barometer is an annual survey of business-to-business (B2B) payment practices in markets across the world.
The 2022 edition of the Atradius Payment Practices Barometer survey findings for Western Europe is a valuable opportunity to hear directly from companies in the local industries about how their business operations are coping with the disruptive impact of the current challenging economic and trading circumstances.
Of course, this survey is a snapshot taken in a very volatile economic environment, and the findings should be viewed with this in mind. The survey was conducted between May and mid-July 2022, and it accurately reflects the situation at the half-year mark of the three industries.
Topics covered include:
- the impact of late or non-payment on the industries polled;
- the average time it takes to turn overdue B2B invoices into cash;
- how businesses manage payment default risks related to selling on credit to B2B customers;
- expected challenges to profitability during the coming months.
Key takeaways from the survey
Several factors like sharply rising energy prices, and the severe instability caused by geopolitical unrest, have sent energy prices and global inflation soaring to levels not seen for decades. This has prompted mounting concern for businesses worldwide, amid fears it will deteriorate the risk of B2B customers defaulting on payment of invoices. This is expected to pose a significant threat to profitability and, in the worst-case scenario, a danger of being pushed out of business completely.
The Atradius Payment Practices Barometer survey shows that companies in the various industries polled in several markets in Western Europe addressed this worry by greatly enhancing their management of credit risk arising from trading on credit with their B2B customers.
Key survey findings by industry
For further insights into the overall survey findings in each of the markets surveyed in Western Europe, please refer to the dedicated reports that form the 2022 edition of the Atradius Payment Practices Barometer for the region, available for download on this website.
Survey findings related to the industries surveyed in the Western Europe markets covered by the study are available in the listed below reports.
Click on the link to get to the specific report where you will find all industries surveyed in the market:
- Agri-food: Austria, France, Ireland, Spain, Switzerland and the United Kingdom
- Chemicals: Austria, Germany, Greece, Italy, Spain and Switzerland
- Construction: Belgium, France, Germany and the Netherlands
- Construction materials: Belgium, France, Italy, Spain, Switzerland and the Netherlands
- Consumer durables: Greece and Sweden
- Electronics/ICT: Denmark, France, Greece, Ireland and United Kingdom
- Machines: Belgium, Denmark and the Netherlands
- Steel/metals: Greece, Ireland, Italy, Sweden, Switzerland and United Kingdom
- Transport: Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland
