7 and adjust their suppliers without delay compared to 38

The return of France growth in the last two quarters does not mean that businesses are outputs of case. Recovery is announcing slow and fragile, the number of failures of SMEs will continue at a record level in 2010. The credit insurer Euler Hermes yesterday, found that business 68.600 may still be placed in rehabilitation or liquidation next year. The never-seen. So many would still be an increase of 2 per cent a year during which failures have already jumped 17 to reach heights (with 67.400 advance cases).

Remains that the hexagonal firms may be comforting in looking at the situation from abroad. In the euro area, the failures bondiraient still 5 in 2010, after having soared 46 this year. Nothing that in Germany, they are still 9, after an increase of 15 in 2009.

Although historical loss experience therefore was less strong in France than in other countries. This is. "The large share of non-financial debt of French SMEs has offset the Bank restriction and to amortize the financing crisis", explains Karine Berger, Director of studies of Euler Hermes.

The France, an atypical case

In clear, hexagonal SMEs tend to less recourse to bank credit as other European companies and to finance further from their suppliers. They therefore were less exposed when banks have closed the tap. The bank debt accounts for 11 of the balance of French SMEs, against 21 in Germany. Conversely, the credit provider is between 15 and 20 of the hexagonales business financing, against 8 in Germany. In addition, "contrary to conventional wisdom, the share of own funds in the French industry is not really lower than elsewhere in Europe", says Karine Berger.

For all these reasons, Euler Hermes explained that the economic crisis had been far more harmful than the financial crisis for French companies. It is the fall in turnover and loss of profitability resulting are at the origin of failures. "The banking crisis has accounted for less than 10 of failures because other sources of financing (debt providers) and social debts have taken over," said Karine Berger. The France is an atypical case: according to the credit insurer, funding restrictions explained half of failures in the world in 2008.

By granting longer payment periods, French companies have taken their dependent part of the financial shock, therefore Euler Hermes. According to a study that publishes tomorrow Altares, company specializing in information on companies, only 31.7 and adjust their suppliers without delay (compared to 38.5 in Europe). Third quarter 2009 marks a turning point since late payment (in addition to statutory deadlines) are reassembled to twelve days. But they had previously experienced a long cycle of improvement, as a result of the preparation of the companies to the shortening of the deadlines for payment imposed by the law of modernization of economy (LME).

"After having concentrated their efforts on the re-entry of cash, and therefore the receipt at the earliest of the regulations of the customers, companies would be now tempted to lower their vigilance on payments for any focus on the recovery and therefore commercial development", questions Thierry Millon, responsible for the analyses of Altares, for which "two objectives must nevertheless be carried out front." ": sell and be paid."