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QUEENSLAND businesses reduced business-to-business payment times by one day in the September quarter compared to the same time last year, according to Dun & Bradstreet (D&B).
The credit reporting specialist’s latest trade payments analysis shows payment-times across Australia fell by five days since the beginning of the global financial crisis.
Queensland followed the trend, recording an average payment time of about 52.5 days, down from more than 53 days in the June quarter this year.
Businesses in Queensland can, on average, expect to be paid faster than their counterparts in New South Wales, the Northern Territory and Australian Capital Territory but slower than in Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia and Western Australia.
Victoria recorded the biggest drop in payment times, down to less than 51 days in the September quarter compared to more than 53 in the previous quarter.
Average payment times across the nation dropped from the 10-year peak of 57.4 days, in the first quarter of 2009 to 52.5 days.
Firms with less than 200 employees took the shortest time to pay their bills during the September quarter, while those with more than 500 employees were the slowest at 55.3 days.
An increase in payment days is expected during the March quarter because trends show payment times traditionally increase post-Christmas.
However, there is still room for improvement since payment times have not reached their historical low of 47.1 days from the second quarter of 2003.
Average payment times have also not fallen below 50 days in eight years, according to D&B.
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