Bankruptcies in Belgium soar to new record

17 June 2008

BELGIUM – In June, 916 Belgian companies declared bankruptcy, setting a new record for Belgium.   

The figure is up by a quarter on the year.

The last record – 854 bankruptcies – was recorded in June 2005.

Most bankruptcies are recorded in the retail, transport and hospitality industries and are mostly in small companies employing less than 10 employees.

The increase in prices and the global economic downturn are identified as the main causes of the companies going under.

Wages, raw materials and energy have all become far more costly and small businesses are not always able to hand on such extra costs to their customers.

Karel Van Eetvelt of the Small Businessmen’s Association Unizo also pointed to the large number of new companies in 2007: "The more start-ups there are, the greater the chance that more will go bust."

Van Eetvelt does not see light at the end of the tunnel as small companies usually enjoy low profitability. He believes Belgium could see many more bankruptcies in the fall.

[flandersnews.be / Expatica]

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