A significant change affecting the dynamics of the importance of the SME sector was the crisis that began in 2008. Previous few analyses showed that the SME sector is more resistant to changes in business cycles than the large enterprises sector. The authors take an attempt to verify the hypothesis about smaller (than the large firms’) sensitivity of the SME sector to the changing economic conditions. The analysis was conducted basing on the available data from the years 2008–2011 about countries belonging to the euro area. Considerations concern the size and structure of the population of enterprises, the size and structure of employment by firm size classes and structure of created value added. The analysis does not allow for the adoption or rejection of the hypothesis about the independence of changes in SME sector and business cycles. Results do not confirm the SME sector greater resistance to the recession. Economies dominated by SMEswere visibly less successful in dealing with the bad situation after 2008. Certainly this does not mean that the deeper crisis was caused by smaller enterprises. In contrast, it can be concluded that in this group of countries, the SME sector has not proved to be a better economic stabilizer than in the other analyzed economies.

A significant change affecting the dynamics of the importance of the SME sector was the crisis that began in 2008. Previous few analyses showed that the SME sector is more resistant to changes in business cycles than the large enterprises sector. The authors take an attempt to verify the hypothesis about smaller (than the large firms’) sensitivity of the SME sector to the changing economic conditions. The analysis was conducted basing on the available data from the years 2008–2011 about countries belonging to the euro area. Considerations concern the size and structure of the population of enterprises, the size and structure of employment by firm size classes and structure of created value added. The analysis does not allow for the adoption or rejection of the hypothesis about the independence of changes in SME sector and business cycles. Results do not confirm the SME sector greater resistance to the recession. Economies dominated by SMEswere visibly less successful in dealing with the bad situation after 2008. Certainly this does not mean that the deeper crisis was caused by smaller enterprises. In contrast, it can be concluded that in this group of countries, the SME sector has not proved to be a better economic stabilizer than in the other analyzed economies.