The number of corporate bankruptcies in the European Union reached its highest level in the second quarter of 2023 since data collection began in 2015, Eurostat reported on Thursday.
The increase in their number was primarily driven by bankruptcies in the accommodation and food services sector, the statistical office’s report shows.
The number of corporate bankruptcies in the second quarter increased by eight percent compared to the previous three months, marking a sixth consecutive quarter of growth, Eurostat announced.
The number of registered new businesses, however, slightly decreased during the same period but remained higher than in the period from 2015 to 2022, the statistical office noted.
All sectors of the economy recorded an increase in the number of bankruptcies compared to the previous quarter, but the accommodation and food services providers were the most affected, with a 24 percent increase in bankruptcies.
This was followed by the transportation and storage sector, where the number of bankruptcies rose by 15 percent compared to the previous three months, and the education, health, and social services sector, where the number increased by 10 percent.
The number of bankruptcies in the second quarter of this year is also higher than before the pandemic in most economic sectors, Eurostat states.
The largest increase in the number of bankruptcies compared to the fourth quarter of the pre-pandemic 2019 was recorded in accommodation and food services, at 83 percent, and in the transportation and storage sector, at 57 percent.
The only exceptions are the industry and construction sectors, which recorded a decrease in the number of bankruptcies of 12 percent and three percent, respectively, compared to the fourth quarter of 2019, Eurostat reported.
