The number of corporate bankruptcies in Germany has fallen for the first time since last February.
Local courts registered 1,995 applications for company bankruptcy in May, a decrease of 2% compared to the same month last year, the Federal Statistical Office in Wiesbaden reported on Friday.
But during the longer period from January to May 2026, the number of corporate bankruptcies rose by about 5% to 10,546.
Local courts estimated creditor claims during the period from January to May at approximately €15.4 billion, significantly lower than the €25.7 billion claimed during the same period last year. This decrease is attributed to a greater number of large companies going bankrupt during that time.
When interpreting the data, it should be noted that applications are not included in the statistics until after the first insolvency court ruling. In many cases, the actual filing of the bankruptcy application occurs approximately three months prior.
For every 10,000 companies, the period from January to May saw 29.8 bankruptcies. The transportation and storage sectors were the hardest hit, with 57.2 bankruptcies per 10,000 companies, followed by the hospitality sector with 49.2, and then the construction sector with 44.
The German economy has been experiencing a wave of bankruptcies for some time now, amid the economic recession. Credit Reform, a credit information company, predicts that the trend in bankruptcies will not reverse before 2027. The Leibniz Institute for Economic Research in Halle, which analyzes bankruptcy trends monthly, recently reported that the number of corporate bankruptcies in Germany reached an "exceptionally high" level last July.
The number of consumer bankruptcies fell by just over 10% year-on-year in May to 5,926, according to the statistics office. However, from January to May, the number rose by about 2% compared to the same period last year, reaching 32,093.
