Bankruptcies in the EU - the most since 2015

The number of declared corporate bankruptcies for the period from April to June 2023 increased for the sixth consecutive quarter. Compared to the previous quarter, the number of bankruptcies increased by 8.4%, reaching the highest level since the beginning of the collection of these statistics in 2015, according to the data of the statistical service Eurostat, Darik Business Review reported.

As for new business registrations, after an increase of 2% in the first quarter of the year, they slightly decreased by 0.6% in the second.

Overall, since the beginning of the year, the number of business registrations has been higher than for the corresponding periods of the years between 2015 and 2022.

All sectors of the economy registered an increase in the number of bankruptcies in the second quarter of 2023, compared to the previous one.

The largest increase was in the field of accommodation and catering services (by 23.9%), transport and logistics (15.2%) and education, healthcare and social activities (10.1%).

Compared to the pre-pandemic fourth quarter of 2019, the number of bankruptcy filings in the second quarter of 2023 was higher in most sectors of the economy.

The largest increase in the number of bankruptcies, compared to the fourth quarter of 2019, was registered in accommodation and food services (by 82.5%) and transport and logistics (56.7%).

In the second quarter of 2023, there are only two sectors of the economy in which the number of bankruptcy declarations is lower, compared to the pre-pandemic fourth quarter of 2019 - industry (-11.5%) and construction (-2.7%).

Compared to 2015, the largest increase in registered bankruptcies occurred in Spain (by 180%, or nearly three times), Slovakia (275%) and Hungary (247%).

In Bulgaria, the increase in the second quarter of this year compared to 2015 was 8.8 percent, while on average for the EU it was 5.7%.