Hatzitheodosiou to OT.gr – Support to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and measures to curb the price increases

The interventions that the Prime Minister intends to announce in order to stop the price increases that affect the companies, were quoted by Giannis Hatzitheodosiou, president of the Professional Chamber of Athens, speaking at the stand of OT at the Thessaloniki International Fair.

The price of electricity is the first and predominant issue, followed by the abolition of memorandum taxes such as the excise duty on coffee products, which burdens the cafés and the reduction of VAT.

Mr. Hatzitheodosiou appealed to the citizens to be vaccinated, as the pandemic does not seem to recede and explained that now it is not only a matter of health but also a matter of economy, as companies may have recruited staff and are willing to invest, but there is a great uncertainty on how the fourth wave of the pandemic will unfold.

As far as the pandemic debts are concerned, the request to write off part of the debts is constant, a request with which Greek companies joined their voices with the European ones, as the problem goes beyond the Greek borders and the solution cannot be only Greek. However, he is not optimistic about the fulfillment of this request  and the proposal of the Union of Hellenic Chambers of Commerce is for the small and medium enterprises, which cannot repay their obligations, to join the NSRF.

One out of four companies can not meet their obligations, i.e. about 200,000 companies, so we look forward to their  upgrade and their support from the NSRF.

Mr. Hatzitheodosiou also referred to the important issue of bank financing, as only 30-40 thousand Greek companies have access to bank lending, while for the rest the lending tap is closed. In addition, while banking institutions raise liquidity at very low interest rates, they then lend to businesses at an interest rate of 6-10%. The Prime Minister is expected to intervene in this very important issue as well, because, as he characteristically said, “Growth and a free economy without a banking system cannot exist.”