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Insolvencies rise among SMEs

May 06 2011

The increase in administrations extends to all sectors

Corporate administrations in England and Wales increased by 22 per cent in Q1 2011 from Q4 2010, research finds.

Manufacturing, which was previously leading the way to recovery, has had a significant increase in administrations by 45 per cent, a trend reflected across all sectors, according to statistics released by accounting firm Baker Tilly.

Businesses in the South East (excluding London) and East Anglia are under increasing pressure with the region suffering from an acceleration of administrations over the past year at 32 per cent and 41 per cent respectively.

David Hudson, partner at Baker Tilly Restructuring and Recovery says, ‘The increases for Q1 are not surprising. Historically, this has been a tough quarter for businesses.’

Hudson adds that the recovery remains ‘fragile’. ‘Evidence that businesses can service any current and, in some cases, additional debt requirements it takes on will be top of the agenda for lenders and stakeholders,’ he says.

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