Business bankruptcies leveled off in June
In June, France saw a slight increase in the number of business bankruptcies, bringing the total over a 12-month period to just over 61,000, according to data released Monday by the Bank of France.
After reaching a total of 61,036 bankruptcies between June 2023 and May 2024—a figure revised upward from the initial estimate (60,210)—the indicator stood at 61,081 bankruptcies over a 12-month period in June.
During the COVID-19 health crisis, these bankruptcies had fallen significantly to historically low levels, thanks to the support measures implemented by the government. However, they now appear to be stabilizing slightly above their average level observed between 2010 and 2019 (59,342).
Compared with May, business bankruptcies rose slightly in June in the construction sector (+222, for a total of 13,513 bankruptcies) and in the automotive retail and repair sector (+93, for a total of 13,049 bankruptcies).
In contrast, a decline was observed in the education, health care, social services, and household services sectors (-235, for a total of 5,460 bankruptcies), as well as in agriculture, forestry, and fishing (-62, for a total of 1,287 bankruptcies).
Based on company size, bankruptcies among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) increased by 56, and they continue to account for the vast majority of bankruptcies (61,025) recorded by the Banque de France.
Among medium-sized companies (ETI) and large companies, the number of bankruptcies was slightly lower in June (56) than in May (67).
