Over 35,000 start-ups in 10 months - record net growth expected

Around 35,500 new companies were entered in the cantonal commercial registers in the first ten months of this year. This is roughly as many as were registered in 12 months in each of the years 2007 - 2009, as calculated by the Creditreform creditors' association. These figures can be read as a sign of how robust and expansive the Swiss economy is at present. On the other hand, the number of deletions has remained relatively stable for years, hovering between 28,000 and 29,000 companies. It follows that a new record in net growth is very likely to result this year.

It is striking that more than half of the new companies are created in the service sector, most of them in the area of "provision of professional, scientific and technical services". This group includes, for example, business and tax consultants, advertising agencies, architectural offices, etc. Wholesale and retail trade follows in second place with a share of 15.5 % and the construction industry with 10.4 %.

From the production to the service economy

The hospitality industry recorded significant negative growth. Here, new registrations are offset by more deletions from the commercial register. This seems surprising, as fast-food chains in particular are setting up many new establishments. However, these are not necessarily new businesses but merely new locations. The construction sector is another industry that ranks fifth among all industries in terms of net growth, with a share of 8.5 % or 991 companies.

The trend from a production economy to a service economy thus continues. According to the Federal Statistical Office, 75 % of all market economy companies in 2015 were from the tertiary sector and only around 16 % from the secondary sector. Viewed individually, the construction sector is also in fifth place among market economy companies with a share of 8.2 %.

Increase in insolvencies

The number of corporate insolvencies rose by 3.5 % to 3,962 in the first ten months. By the end of the year, Creditreform expects companies to have filed for bankruptcy almost 4,800 times. This would be the second-highest figure ever measured; only in 2004 were significantly more bankruptcies recorded, at 4,955. Most insolvencies also occur in the services sector, followed by the construction industry. Although only 8.2 % of all market-economy companies are in the construction sector, the share in corporate insolvencies is shockingly high at 23.5 %, Creditreform notes. The insolvency share of firms from the trade sector is also significantly higher than their share among companies (18.8 % compared to 13.1 %). The share of insolvencies in the hospitality sector is 13.7 % in the first 10 months. This is also significantly higher than the share of total companies, which is only 5 %.

Source and further information: Creditreform