Thousands of companies in Devon are in "significant" economic distress, a new report has revealed.
Some 8,100 businesses in the county are now struggling - a quarterly increase of 3.4% and an annual rise of 37.7% - according to the latest figures from Begbies Traynor鈥檚 Red Flag Alert, which monitors the financial health of 海角视频 companies.
The data highlights the speed at which financial distress has accelerated over the last 12 months. Sectors struggling the most include leisure and culture, which has seen a 67.4% rise in firms in difficulty, and retail which has seen a 56% increase.
Scott Kippax, partner at Begbies Traynor in Devon, said the macroeconomic conditions that made 2023 difficult have continued to "exert unrelenting pressure" on corporate balance sheets.
"Despite some optimism as we entered the new year, 2024 has so far been characterised by a continuation of the same pressures that plagued companies in the 海角视频 throughout 2023," he said.
鈥淎s a result, this latest data shows a marked increase in firms moving towards insolvency compared to the same period last year. Unfortunately, there鈥檚 no quick fix for our economy, and with inflation falling slower than expected, hope of a significant fall in interest rates in the near future seems to be fading.
鈥淪adly, the pressing issues facing many businesses today will simply push many over the edge and contribute to the current high level of 海角视频 corporate insolvencies.鈥
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Nationally, there were 554,554 businesses in "significant distress" in the first quarter of the year - 30.8% higher than the same period in 2023. There were also more than 40,000 firms in "critical distress" - up 20.1% on the year previously.
Red Flag Alert鈥檚 historic data indicates that a large percentage of the businesses currently in "significant" financial distress are likely to progress towards "critical" financial distress and potential insolvency if the economic backdrop does not improve.
