Capital Equipment News December 2020

Babcock recommends that companies ensure that they are as efficient and productive as possible in these tough economic times.

interest in pre-owned units, as clients opt for more cost-effective solutions to their most urgent requirements,” says Marais. He says financial institutions are as cautious as ever in this volatile environment as they try to navigate the risk, and that credit applications take longer to approve. “We also found that the time frames for credit approvals seem to have been extended. They are now much longer than ever before.” The uncertainty which characterised 2020, especially in light of the COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing lockdowns the world-over have, according to Vaughan, caused a slow-down in business processes. “A number of pending contracts and, subsequently, equipment orders were delayed and put on hold as companies adopted a ‘wait and see’ strategy to ascertain the exact impact of the pandemic on the price and demand for commodities and on the economy in general.” Surviving the downturn To survive an economic downturn much worse than the global financial crisis of the early 2000s, Marais recommends that businesses “stay calm” and adjust to the

Global equity markets posted their worst three-month decline since the great financial crisis of 2007/2008

Aggregates seem to have had a much deeper decline than commodities

Financial institutions are as cautious as ever as they try to navigate the risk. Credit applications therefore take longer to approve

A number of pending contracts and equipment orders were delayed or put on hold

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