Deloitte: CFOs remain wary

By Rob Starr, Content Manager, Big4.com

Eighty four percent of CFOs believe now is not the time to take additional risk onto their balance sheets. This from a new survey of Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) released by professional services firm Deloitte.

Deloitte’s Chief Operating Officer, Keith Skinner, said the latest survey revealed the ongoing market uncertainty was the biggest factor impacting capital expenditure plans (35%), but there were a number of recurring themes that were also contributing to this negative sentiment including federal government policy uncertainty (26%), cost of labour (28%) as well as funding availability (21%).

“We’re currently in the midst of the biggest structural shift our economy has seen in the last thirty years,” he said. ” Research from Deloitte Access Economics shows that economies in the resource driven regions of Australia are surging ahead with growth levels that have approached those of China, while the south eastern corner of the country is seeing growth rates of less than 2%.”

He went on to talk about the lingering global uncertainity.

“There’s clearly still a great deal of uncertainty in the global economy and the situation in both Europe and the United States is weighing on many CFOs. It is telling that a potential slowdown in the Chinese economy is now the number one factor influencing CFO optimism (72%).”