Results from the 2020 EIB survey on Investment and Investment Finance (EIBIS)

EIBIS is an annual EU-wide survey that gathers information on investment activities among small and medium-sized businesses and larger corporates. Specifically, EIBIS collects data on firm characteristics and performance, past investment activities and future plans, sources of finance, financing issues and other challenges that businesses face.

Ipsos supported the development and implementation of the survey across all EU member states, the United Kingdom and the United States of America. Data was collected from a representative sample of around 13,500 businesses.

Findings from EIBIS have been published in a series of individual country reports, an EU27 report, and in an interactive online visualisation tool.

As reported in the EU27 report, across the EU, the survey found the following:

• More than two fifths (45%) of EU firms, with investment plans in the current financial year, expect to invest less in 2020 due to COVID-19.
• The survey data suggest that the COVID-19 pandemic is likely to encourage firms to make greater use of digital technologies.
• Firms are expecting greater economic uncertainty, with more firms expecting a deterioration in the economic climate over the next 12 months than an improvement.
• Uncertainty about the future and lack of staff with the right skills continue to be barriers to investment across the EU.  
• Nearly three fifths (58%) of firms in the EU report that their businesses have been impacted, at least to some extent, by climate change and changing weather patterns.
• Two in three (67%) EU firms have made investments to tackle the impacts of weather events and reductions in carbon emissions, or plan to do so. This is higher than in the US (46%).

Technical note

Fieldwork was conducted by telephone between May and August. Random samples were drawn from Bureau van Dijk’s ORBIS database, covering businesses with five or more employees operating in sectors NACE C-J, with quotas set on firm size and sector. Data are weighted to this universe.