According to a report from one of the world’s leading credit insurance companies Euler Hermes, Danish companies are the fastest to receive payment for their invoices amongst all the EU states.
In 2017, on average, it took Danish companies 47 days to receive payment. This number is 19 days less than the global average and is one day less than in 2016.
Nordic countries ahead of the pack
The report mapped out payment deadlines and used the metric days sales outstanding (DSO). Denmark’s neighbours were also ranked at the top with Norway and Sweden receiving payments in 57 days, while Finland took 50.
“DSO can go up because there is a high level of trust, and business is going well because companies feel more secure extending credit to their customers, but it can also be a signal that there is pressure on liquidity,” Michael Lercke Pedersen, administrative director at Euler Hermes, says.
“Even though Denmark’s DSO has fallen, we don’t see this as a trend. On the contrary we see a tendency among a group of large companies to push suppliers on the payment deadline,” he added.
Differences in industry
The countries’ DSO differed for different sectors of industry. The highest waiting period was in the supply industry at 83 days, followed by the machinery industry (64) and the technical sector (58).
The United Kingdom, which is one of Denmark’s biggest trading partners, has a steady figure of 53 days despite a period of uncertainty caused by Brexit.
