Hope rises among NSW businesses in the face of COVID-19 crisis

Almost three-quarters of the state's business owners believe their operations will survive the COVID-19 crisis, the state's peak business organisation, Business NSW.

The survey was conducted on Thursday night as part of a Tele Town Hall event involving NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet, which involved more than 3000 businesses from across NSW.

Asked whether they believe that their business would survive the current crisis, 72 per cent of respondents answered yes. Another 23 per cent said they were unsure and five per cent said they expected their business would be forced to close.

"These are encouraging numbers considering the impact the virus and the restrictions have had on businesses of all types and in all locations" Hunter Business Chamber CEO Bob Hawes said.

"The optimism and 'can do' attitude of business owners and their employees has never surprised me; however, this has been the ultimate test of their endurance and perseverance."

Unprecedented level of state and federal government support for business appeared to be helping businesses ride out the crisis, Mr Hawes said.

"The Treasurer, too, was heartened by these figures, and by the grit and resilience being shown by the business operators on the call - their determination to continue operations, pay their staff and support their communities was there for all to hear and see.

"Of course, the big challenge for businesses will be in coming months when our way of life slowly starts to return to a new normal and the harsh reality of their true financial position becomes clear after government subsidies end."

He went on to say that observance of the state's restrictions would further help businesses regain their footing as early as possible.

"For this reason, the Chamber and Business NSW support the use COVIDSafe App and are advocating for a staged re-opening of regional areas where there are no cases of the virus," Mr Hawes said.