The number of insolvencies in Germany, in the first six months of this year, rose significantly throughout the economy. The service sector was particularly affected, recording 6,500 bankruptcies, an increase of almost 35%. There was also a sharp rise in trade (+20.4%), construction (+27.5%), and manufacturing (+21.5%). Insolvencies among larger companies, in particular, are well above the level of previous years.
Creditreform, a European risk-management umbrella group, does not expect the situation to improve. “Economic development in Germany is likely to be weak in 2024. Together with the still high interest rates, corporate financing will remain a real challenge,” said Patrik-Ludwig Hantzsch, head of Creditreform Economic Research. He expects insolvency figures to exceed pre-Covid pandemic levels for the first time this year, above 20,000. There were 18,000 company bankruptcies in 2023, slightly fewer than the 18,830 in 2019.
