IMPACT OF CORONAVIRUS CRISIS ON SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED ENTERPRISES IN THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC

Abstract

The crisis caused by the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic has hit the corporate sector from an economic point of view particularly hard. The forced closure of operations led to a dramatic drop in sales and disruption of normal cash flow. In this regard, SMEs have been affected the most. Because of their economic and social importance for the economies, governments have taken many measures to help them. This article aims to evaluate the impacts of the coronavirus crisis on small and medium-sized enterprises in the Slovak Republic. For this purpose, we surveyed 139 SMEs up to the end of 2020. The results of the survey show that the existing help from the state has not compensated for the loss of sales and losses that entrepreneurs have had to deal with. The negative impact of the measures related to the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic was felt by up to 96% of the addressed SMEs. The article also includes proposals from interviewed SMEs regarding business support measures. In this regard, it is necessary to focus especially on eliminating the technical and procedural shortcomings of the measures.