During the week from 19 to 25 April included (week 16), the business courts pronounced 95 bankruptcies, resulting in a total of 212 job losses. The figures for week 16 show that the number of bankruptcies and job losses has stabilised compared to the previous week.
During the first 16 weeks of 2021, the business courts pronounced 1,876 bankruptcies. This figure is 33.2% lower than in the first 16 weeks of 2020. However, job losses per bankruptcy are 21.9% higher in 2021 than in the previous year. During the first 16 weeks of 2021, 2.4 jobs were lost per bankruptcy while this ratio amounted to 2.0 in the same period in 2020.
This is what emerged from the weekly bankruptcy figures produced by Statbel based on the orders of business courts. These interim weekly estimates make it possible to quickly observe the first trends.
The number of bankruptcies and job losses for the first 16 weeks of the year
| Category | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2021/2020 | 2021/2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bancruptcies | 3,343 | 2,810 | 1,876 | -33.20% | -43.90% |
| Job losses | 7,043 | 5,629 | 4,580 | -18.60% | -35.00% |
| Job losses/Bancruptcies | 2.11 | 2.00 | 2.44 | +21.90% | +15.90% |