Bankruptcies Continue to Climb

A record wave of bankruptcies continues to roll over Germany, despite the first signs of economic recovery. According to the Federal Office of Statistics in Wiesbaden, the number of declared insolvencies rose a quarter in the seven months to July. A total of 58,700 corporations, small businesses and freelancers declared bankruptcy in the first seven months of the year. Creditreform, a research organization in Düsseldorf that collects data on bankruptcies, says Germany leads the list of bankruptcy rates and related layoffs in Europe, followed by Spain.