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Bloomberg
Bankruptcies among Swedish restaurants and hotels jumped by 123% in March as measures to contain coronavirus pandemic stopped people from making trips and socialising.
The transport sector was also hit hard with bankruptcies rising by 105% in March compared to same month a year ago, according to business and credit reference agency UC. The overall number of companies going bust in Sweden the last month increased by 9%, it said.
Sweden’s Social Democrat-led government and its coalition partners announced new labour market measures after 36,800 workers were given notice. The figure was the highest on record and stands in sharp contrast to the slightly below 3,300 notices in March last year.
The government has also lowered its projection for growth and now expects Sweden’s gross domestic product to shrink by 4%, the deepest contraction since the global financial crisis of 2008.
and unemployment to rise to 9% in 2020. In a further blow UC also said suppliers to the automotive industry — which are suffering from a lack of components — and the transportation sector are next in line for more bankruptcies as the crisis continues to spread through society.
On a positive note, bankruptcies in the retail sector decreased by 17% compared to March last year, the agency said.