KUALA LUMPUR: More than 60 per cent of 165 small and medium businesses polled for the RAM-CTOS Business Confidence Index (BCI) said they had not benefited from government assistance.
Reasons cited include ineligibility, overly stringent conditions and a lack of awareness of such programmes, according to the RAM-CTOS Business Confidence Index (RAM-CTOS BCI).
The RAM-CTOS BCI is a survey jointly conducted by RAM and CTOS, from 1Q 2022, on forward looking business sentiment and topical issues faced by the small and medium business community in Malaysia.
Micro firms surveyed seem to be particularly vexed by the stringency tied to aid schemes, with around a third of them citing this hurdle.
Meanwhile, rising costs and a weak economy topped the list of concerns for SMEs for the next three to 12 months.
Of the 165 firms surveyed in Q3 2023, around 64 per cent cited lower income tax rates as the most beneficial measure that Budget 2024 could provide, while 44 per cent wanted utility tariff cuts.
The RAM-CTOS BCI declined to 50.4 in the third quarter of 2023 (Q3 2023) from 54.8 in the previous quarter, ending a two quarter improvement streak.
It noted challenging operating conditions that still persist are likely to have dented business confidence for the next three months.
The quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) drop in the sales (-6.7 points) and profitability (-7.0 points) sub-indices was particularly pronounced, consistent with slowing demand and further inflationary pressures.
The manufacturing sector registered the lowest overall index reading (-8.4 points to 40.8), given its higher exposure to exports, relative to the business services (55.9) and retail (53.8) sectors.