Cost and Investment Strategic Approaches in the Context of Macroeconomic Conditions in Selected Industrial Enterprises

Abstract

This scientific publication is devoted to the analysis and verification of the cost and investment decision-making process in selected industrial enterprises operating in conditions of increased macroeconomic volatility. The aim of the analysis was to determine the extent to which the decision-making mechanisms used enable the negative effects of cost pressure and economic fluctuations to be mitigated, as well as to identify the factors determining the stability of operating results and economic efficiency. For this purpose, financial and comparative analysis methods were used. The analysis covered three capital groups: PGE Polska Grupa Energetyczna S.A., KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. and Grupa Azoty S.A. The empirical material consisted of consolidated financial statements and management reports of the analysed entities for the years 2019-2024. Selected financial parameters were examined: sales revenues, operating costs, the level and dynamics of EBIT margins, the intensity of capital expenditure and the links between the scale of investment, cost structure and the stability of financial results. The results of the analysis confirmed significant differences in the effectiveness of decision-making processes between the analysed capital groups, resulting primarily from the flexibility of the cost structure, the ability to control costs on an ongoing basis and the ability to adjust the scale of operations to changing market conditions. At the same time, it was demonstrated that high investment intensity did not directly translate into short-term improvement in operational efficiency or stabilisation of financial results, and that during the analysed period, investment decisions mainly served an adaptive and regulatory function. The benchmarking exercise made it possible to identify structural limitations in decision-making processes and the diverse profiles of operational resilience of the analysed capital groups to cost pressure and macroeconomic volatility.