The terrible toll of recession: 47,000 Irish firms closed
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FIVE companies went to the wall every day in Ireland in 2011, shocking new figures showed today. In the first 11 months of this year, over 1,800 companies closed, leaving behind €1.15bn in debts, business intelligence analyst Vision-net revealed.
And since the start of the recession in 2008, a total of 46,931 companies have ceased trading in Ireland.
The hardest hit areas are predictably construction and real estate - 4,000 fewer companies are now in operation compared with 2008.
However, the retail and wholesale sectors have recorded net growth, with 2,300 companies starting up in the past four years.
Hospitality, information technology and communications are also expanding, the research shows.
The figures also indicate that many people whose businesses failed are not afraid to try again, and the entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well, despite the dire economic picture.
Vision-net said it has found that corporate insolvencies are still high and there has been an increase in the number of companies categorised as medium to high risk,, due to lower profits and debt problems.
- Independent.ie reporters
