Latest news with #insolvencies
Daily Mail
7 hours ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Companies in crisis as MORE firms go bust: Surge in numbers of businesses closing down in England and Wales - and experts say Rachel Reeves' Budget of blunders is to blame
More companies are going bust across England and Wales, with experts saying Rachel Reeves ' Budget is to blame. Official data from the Insolvency Service showed there were 2,081 company insolvencies in July, edging up by 1% compared with June. The number of compulsory liquidations was slightly higher than in June and up 11% compared with the same month in 2024. Accessories giant Claire's last week became the latest big name retailer to file for administration in another blow to Britain's high streets. Hobbycraft, Quiz Clothing, Select Fashion and WH Smith had also either falling under or closing stores. While more than 1,000 pubs and restaurants have closed down since Ms Reeves' tax raiding Budget last October. Simon Edel, UK turnaround and restructuring strategy partner at EY-Parthenon, warned that 'liquidity pressures are intensifying for more UK companies'. And Dragons' Den icon Theo Pathitis has warned stores may not be able to survive if they are hit with further tax hikes in the autumn. Ms Reeves' Budget last October means employers pay a 15 per cent National Insurance rate on staff salaries exceeding £5,000 from April rather than the current 13.8 per cent levy on wages above £9,100. She also said the National Living Wage would go up by 77p to £12.21 per hour, alongside increases in the capital gains tax rates on selling business assets. July's figure was also a quarter higher than the monthly average across 2024, the data showed. The level of firms facing insolvency has remained elevated since reaching a 30-year annual high in 2023. Construction firms continue to come under the most pressure, with 3,984 insolvencies in the 12 months to July - making up 17% of all cases. This is followed by wholesale and retailers, who made up 16% of all company insolvencies. Experts said firms are being challenged by 'relentless uncertainty' in the global economic environment. Mr Edel said: 'Many businesses are also contending with higher costs including recent increases to employer national insurance contributions and the national living wage. Accessories giant Claire's last week became the latest big name retailer to file for administration in another blow to Britain's high streets Arts and crafts retailer Hobbycraft announced in April that nine more stores will close their doors across both the remainder of August and into September 'With interest rates still relatively high - alongside significant working capital demands and a constrained credit environment - liquidity pressures are intensifying for more UK companies. 'This is causing more businesses and stakeholders to call time.' Freddy Khalaschi, business recovery partner at Menzies, said: 'The summer heat is bearing down on British businesses. 'Thames Water's reserves are drying up, Claire's has fallen into administration, River Island narrowly avoided the same fate after the court agreed a restructuring plan, and more than 1,000 pubs and restaurants have gone under since the last Budget. 'Consumer confidence remains fragile, house prices are falling and falling job vacancies suggest that businesses are cutting back, with hiring costs rising and with AI and automation starting to make their presence felt.' It comes as store closures this year are predicted to top 17,000. It is the highest figure since the Centre for Retail Research (CRR), which compiled the report, began collecting the data in 2015 and follows the closure of 13,479 stores last year. The vast majority of closed shops in 2024 – 11,341 – were independent retailers, a 45.5 per cent jump against the previous year. Business leaders have called for the Chancellor to 'urgently' change course with her tax-raising policies to prevent British high streets from becoming ghost towns. The CRR's forecast of 17,350 store closures would make 2025 worse than 2022, when the withdrawal of government support measures following the pandemic caused 17,151 shops to close. Around 16,145 stores shut their doors at the height of lockdown in 2020.
Bloomberg
14-07-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Turkish Official Is Pushing to Allow Firms to Restructure Loans
Turkish companies are struggling under a prolonged period of high borrowing costs, a senior official from President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government said, adding he's championing a proposal to facilitate loan restructuring. Filings for insolvencies have shot up by 70% compared to the previous year, deputy chairman of the Justice and Development Party in charge of economic affairs, Nihat Zeybekci, told Bloomberg in an interview last week. To prevent a further increase, the AKP official and former economy minister said he's pushing for measures for companies to get debt relief for at least a year — a 'preventative measure'.
Yahoo
18-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Sign of life for Aussie economy
The worst could be over for struggling businesses in the hospitality and construction sectors, as the number of insolvencies dropped in May. Two key measures of business stress – insolvencies and business-to-business payment defaults – are easing, CreditorWatch data shows. Overall, insolvencies are down 0.9 per cent from April to May and have now dropped 12 per cent from their November peak, while business-to-business payment defaults dipped 11.8 per cent in May and are down 18.3 per cent from their peak in December. The major falls were in the discretionary facing sectors, including hospitality and construction. The falls come as the same pressures impacting households – inflation, higher interest rates and taxes – begin to ease on businesses. CreditorWatch chief executive Patrick Coghlan said insolvencies and trade payment defaults had levelled out, albeit at quite elevated levels, suggesting some of the pressures on businesses from higher costs and constrained consumer spending may be beginning to be balanced out. But he warned that businesses, particularly in the hospitality sectors, are still struggling to pass on higher input costs to customers. 'This levelling off of insolvencies has been long awaited and is very welcome, but we need to remember that several industries still face significant challenges, particularly those exposed to discretionary spending,' Mr Coghlan said. 'If the price of a sandwich at a cafe goes up by three or $4, people can very easily go elsewhere or bring their lunch from home.' The decline in hospitality businesses facing insolvency follows CreditorWatch data back in October 2024 that showed one in six businesses were rated at high risk of collapsing. The turnaround follows several tailwinds for these consumer facing businesses, including two interest rate cuts from the Reserve Bank since February, lower taxes for households starting in July 2024 as well as a further lifting in the minimum wage from July 1. CreditorWatch chief economist Ivan Colhoun said this increase in payments would come with mixed reactions from businesses in the hospitality sector. 'The good thing is that we will likely see these funds recycled into the economy,' he said. 'Interest rate relief by the RBA, as inflation has moderated, should also improve cash flow a little for both consumers and businesses alike. '(But) the Fair Work Commission's decision to increase the national minimum wage from 1 July 2025 will benefit consumers but apply further pressure on businesses, particularly in retail and hospitality.'
News.com.au
18-06-2025
- Business
- News.com.au
‘Very welcome': Business insolvencies fall
The worst could be over for struggling businesses in the hospitality and construction sectors, as the number of insolvencies dropped in May. Two key measures of business stress – insolvencies and business-to-business payment defaults – are easing, CreditorWatch data shows. Overall, insolvencies are down 0.9 per cent from April to May and have now dropped 12 per cent from their November peak, while business-to-business payment defaults dipped 11.8 per cent in May and are down 18.3 per cent from their peak in December. The major falls were in the discretionary facing sectors, including hospitality and construction. The falls come as the same pressures impacting households – inflation, higher interest rates and taxes – begin to ease on businesses. CreditorWatch chief executive Patrick Coghlan said insolvencies and trade payment defaults had levelled out, albeit at quite elevated levels, suggesting some of the pressures on businesses from higher costs and constrained consumer spending may be beginning to be balanced out. But he warned that businesses, particularly in the hospitality sectors, are still struggling to pass on higher input costs to customers. 'This levelling off of insolvencies has been long awaited and is very welcome, but we need to remember that several industries still face significant challenges, particularly those exposed to discretionary spending,' Mr Coghlan said. 'If the price of a sandwich at a cafe goes up by three or $4, people can very easily go elsewhere or bring their lunch from home.' The decline in hospitality businesses facing insolvency follows CreditorWatch data back in October 2024 that showed one in six businesses were rated at high risk of collapsing. The turnaround follows several tailwinds for these consumer facing businesses, including two interest rate cuts from the Reserve Bank since February, lower taxes for households starting in July 2024 as well as a further lifting in the minimum wage from July 1. CreditorWatch chief economist Ivan Colhoun said this increase in payments would come with mixed reactions from businesses in the hospitality sector. 'The good thing is that we will likely see these funds recycled into the economy,' he said. 'Interest rate relief by the RBA, as inflation has moderated, should also improve cash flow a little for both consumers and businesses alike. '(But) the Fair Work Commission's decision to increase the national minimum wage from 1 July 2025 will benefit consumers but apply further pressure on businesses, particularly in retail and hospitality.'
Irish Times
19-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Business closures concentrated in Greater Dublin area, new report shows
Dublin and its neighbouring counties have seen the highest levels of business closures relative to their population in the first five months of the year, but Clare is also in the top five, according to new data from The consultancy firm has analysed the more than 3,250 businesses that have shut up shop this year based on data compiled by the Companies Registration Office (CRO). Dublin had a closure rate of 121.1 businesses for every 100,000 people, said, more than double the rate of most other counties, unsurprising given the large number of businesses based in the city and its environs. Louth and Clare were second and third with rates of 60.8 and 60.2 per 100,000 people, the firm said. 'Both counties have a mix of retail, hospitality, and tourism-focused businesses which can be more vulnerable to economic volatility,' said. READ MORE Rounding out the top five are Meath and Wicklow, with closure rates of 50 for every 100,000 people living there, 'a sign that rapid development and rising commercial costs could be impacting small and mid-sized enterprises in those areas'. Business closures and insolvencies have been on the rise since 2023. The winding down of Covid-era subsidies and the government's tax debt warehousing scheme, coupled with rising energy costs stemming from the war in Ukraine, have contributed to the phenomenon. Company insolvencies reached 875 in 2024, up a third on the previous year and the highest number since 2016, according to a report from accountants Deloitte published in January. The firm predicts that this year's total will top 1,000, an average of 20 a week. Hospitality businesses, shops and builders, all of which suffered in 2024, are likely to remain most at risk this year, Deloitte warned. Hospitality businesses, mostly pubs and restaurants, accounted for 147 casualties in 2024, up from 99 the previous year and more than twice the 66 failures recorded in 2022.
