Japan Bankruptcies Hit 1,037 in July as Retail Failures Reach Highest Since 2000
Updated
Updated · jp.ibtimes.com · Aug 10
Japan Bankruptcies Hit 1,037 in July as Retail Failures Reach Highest Since 2000
3 articles · Updated · jp.ibtimes.com · Aug 10
Summary
1,037 Japanese companies went bankrupt in July, up 8.5% from a year earlier and 9 above June, pushing monthly failures above 1,000 for a second straight month for the first time since late 2009.
234.1 billion yen in liabilities—up 40.6%—made July the year's largest monthly total, with credit-card settlement firm Zentoshin alone accounting for 115.2 billion yen, about half the sum.
234 retail failures, up 27.2%, marked the highest July level since 2000 as inflation-linked bankruptcies hit a record 121; restaurant, food retailer and wholesaler failures all climbed.
840 cases were tied to sluggish sales and 847 to recession-type conditions, while liquidation-type bankruptcies rose to 1,003 and small firms remained dominant, with 70% involving individuals or companies capitalized below 10 million yen.
Seven of nine regions posted increases, including a 57.5% jump in Tohoku, underscoring how weak demand, inflation and lingering zero-zero loan burdens are spreading stress across Japan's economy.