Over 70% mid-market firms upbeat on domestic economy, revenue growth: HSBC

A majority 77 per cent of the mid market enterprises (MMEs) in the country are confident about the domestic economy and expect higher revenue growth compared to their global peers, says an HSBC study.

As per data compiled by the global financial service firm, there were around 115,000 MMEs in India, in 2014, which employed a total of 53 million people and produced USD 350 billion of Gross Value Added (GVA).

"MMEs (50 per cent) in India are less confident in the global economy compared to respondents overall (58 per cent), though they are more confident in their local economy (77 per cent vs. 69 per cent)," HSBC said in the study.

"Indian MMEs report and expect slightly higher revenue growth compared to all respondents, but lag slightly when it comes to reported and forecast profit margins," it added.

Besides, more than half of such companies felt that the country provides good opportunities for entrepreneurs.

"About 61 per cent of Indian MMEs consider themselves risk takers compared with a global average of 50 per cent," the study said.

Further, it found that more than half of the MMEs in India forecast that technology investments would be a lower priority in the next three years.

The study covers MMEs in 14 countries. The MMEs are defined as companies with between 200 and 2,000 employees.

"MME firms make a huge contribution to their economies, and have the potential to deliver even greater growth if they considered going to new markets," HSBC Chief Executive of Global Commercial Banking Noel Quinn said.

"In an environment of lower growth, we must help these companies reap the benefits of international commerce, and just as importantly work to raise their profile as major economic contributors, and potentially influential government stake-holders," Quinn added.

HSBC has estimated that over 43 lakh MME companies across 14 countries covered by the study directly employed 208 million people equivalent to the population of Brazil and support USD 3.4 trillion in exports.

The firm said that if MMEs boost their exports by just 1 per cent, they could add a combined USD 12.5 billion to their economic impact.

In India, about one-tenth of sales by Indian MMEs were exported -- the lowest export share amongst the 14 countries in the study -- suggesting that the vast majority of the output is used to satisfy domestic demand, HSBC said.

"We estimate that the total value of exports of Indian MMEs was just under USD 90 billion," it added.