Information Releases

Japan’s Business Failures during April to September 2020

(Released by TEIKOKU DATABANK, LTD.)
There were 3,956 bankruptcies, going under 4,000 for the first time since the second half of FY2004.
Liabilities totaled 601,250 million yen, the second-lowest level ever.

Highlight and Outstanding Feature

• ■There were 3,956 bankruptcies (4,172 in the same period of the previous year, down 5.2% year-on-year). This marked the first decrease in two years compared with the same period of the previous year, and the number went under 4,000 for the first time since the second half of FY2004. There were two bankruptcies of listed companies.
• ■Liabilities totaled 601,250 million yen (564,648 million yen in the same period of the previous year, up 6.5% year-on-year). This was the second-lowest level after the same period of the previous year, which saw the lowest amount on a half-year basis since FY2000 as a year that can be compared.
• ■By industry, the number of bankruptcies decreased year-on-year in five of seven industries. Among them, bankruptcies in the construction industry (606 bankruptcies, down 15.6% year-on-year) decreased for the first time in two years, marking the lowest-ever number on a half-year basis since FY2000.
• ■In terms of primary cause, recession-induced bankruptcies numbered 3,159 (down 3.5% year-on-year). They account for 79.9% (up 1.4 points) of all bankruptcies.
• ■In terms of liabilities, bankruptcies of companies with liabilities totaling less than 50 million yen numbered 2,472 (down 4.7% year-on-year) and comprised 62.5% (up 0.3 points year-on-year) of the total. Although small-scale bankruptcies decreased compared with the same period of the previous year, bankruptcies of companies with liabilities of 500 million yen or more but less than 10 billion yen increased.
• ■By region, five of nine regions experienced year-on-year declines. In Kanto (1,342 bankruptcies, down 11.5% year-on-year) bankruptcies fell in the Tokyo metropolitan area and four prefectures of the region. Among them, Tokyo (665 bankruptcies, down 13.3% year-on-year) marked the lowest-ever number on a half-year basis since FY2000.
• ■There were 65 bankruptcies caused by a labor shortage (down 26.1% year-on-year), marking the first year-on-year decrease in four years.
• ■There were 230 bankruptcies caused by a difficulty in finding a successor (up 1.3% year-on-year), marking the third consecutive year of year-on-year increase.
• ■There were 265 post-moratorium bankruptcies (up 3.9% year-on-year), marking the second consecutive year of year-on-year increase.
• ■The largest amount of liabilities was posted by White Bear Family Co., Ltd. (Civil Rehabilitation Act, Osaka, June) with liabilities of approximately 27,800 million yen.