Barthélémy Philippe, edited by Loane Nader 09:16, April 18, 2023
The number of business bankruptcies is rebounding and even exceeds that of before Covid-19. Obvious reasons include rising energy prices and the economic slowdown, which also led to 44% more bankruptcies over one year. This Tuesday, the firm Altares will publish the figures for the first quarter of 2023.This is a harsh reality check for companies facing a level of bankruptcy equal to that of pre-Covid-19. There were 44% more bankruptcies over one year, exceeding the number in the first quarter of 2019. The first concerned are the smallest, those with fewer than ten employees. But in sectors such as construction and catering, SMEs and mid-caps are also suffering.
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47,000 jobs lost or threatened
With more than 1,100 bankruptcies in three months, they are facing a situation not seen since 2015. The director of studies at Altares, Thierry Million, testifies: "It reflects the difficulty of following the recovery, obviously in a context complicated by inflation that is more severe than expected and with household consumption that is still not at the rendezvous."
In addition, Thierry Milion also explains that "these are companies that are employers and therefore, when an SME suffers and falls, it is more jobs threatened than when it is a VSB with less than ten employees." And the firm Altares also lists 47,000 jobs lost or threatened over the period, a figure that had not been reached since 2017.