11/11/2025
https://www.seedplus.com.au/industries-facing-the-toughest-cash-flow/
The Australian economy is holding up pretty well overall, but when you look closer, there’s a serious squeeze happening in specific small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) right across Australia, especially in places like Melbourne and Victoria. This period is defined by a double whammy: persistent, tight monetary policy keeping interest rates high, coupled with deep seated operational inflation impacting crucial inputs like labour and materials. These factors are severely eroding the operating margins of vulnerable firms, leading to a critical normalisation—or, in many cases, total depletion—of the cash reserves that businesses managed to accumulate during the pandemic years.
The Aussie economy is holding up pretty well overall, but when you look closer, there's a serious cash flow challange in various industries