Efectos del confinamiento por COVID-19 en los indicadores financieros del sector de manufactura en Ecuador periodo 2020.

Abstract

Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) has been the region most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The strong contraction as a result of the health crisis has resulted in high economic and social costs. Taking into account that the increase in the participation of manufacturing in GDP is a key characteristic of economic growth, the purpose of this research work was to analyze the effects of confinement by COVID-19 on the financial indicators of the manufacturing sector in Ecuador. The balance sheets published by the Superintendency of Companies, Securities and Insurance of the manufacturing sector were analyzed, on which significant differences in financial ratios between the period 2018 and 2020 were evaluated, and then a forecast method of several industries projected until 2024 was applied. The results determined that the impact of COVID-19 in the manufacturing industry has had implications in the production, demand and supply chains, through the delay of orders, the increase in costs and uncertainty. In Ecuador, no significant differences were found in the liquidity and indebtedness ratios, however, statistically significant differences were found in the operational and profitability ratios, only eight industries were profitable during the study period. There were industries with positive results during the pandemic, such as the manufacture of chemical substances and products, the pharmaceutical industry and the manufacturing industry of computer, electronic and optical products with positive projections. The most affected industry was the leather and related products manufacturing industry.