In the first quarter of this year, the number of new company registrations in the European Community dropped compared to the previous quarter, reaching an index value (seasonally adjusted) of 101.4 points compared to 107.3 points from the last quarter of 2024. The figure for the first quarter of this year was the lowest since the fourth quarter of 2022.
However, in the second quarter of this year, there was a rebound – the index reached 106.1 points, which is slightly lower than 107.3 points from the last quarter of last year (The index uses 2021 as a base year (2021 = 100), as data before then was submitted on a voluntary basis.).
Registrations of New Businesses in the EU, index 2021 = 100
| Q1 2024 | Q2 2024 | Q3 2024 | Q4 2024 | Q1 2025 | Q2 2025 |
| 105.4 | 103.7 | 104.6 | 107.3 | 101.4 | 106.1 |
Source: Eurostat
Trends across the European Union
The greatest increase in new company registrations was noted in the Netherlands, where the quarter-on-quarter increase exceeded 57 percent. Following were Spain (with an increase of 27.6 percent) and Romania (19 percent).
The biggest decreases, meanwhile, were in Denmark (-18.2 percent), Cyprus (-8.4 percent), and Germany (-6.2 percent), with negative figures also seen in countries such as Poland (-0.5 percent), Italy (-4.8 percent), and Hungary (-0.7 percent).
Registrations increase, led by transport sector
Similar to the first quarter of this year, the second quarter also saw the highest registration index for the transport and storage sector. However, this index increased even more markedly quarter-on-quarter – by over 13 percent.
Next were activities related to accommodation and food services, followed by education, healthcare and social assistance. In their cases, the index also rose quarter-on-quarter – by 3.2 and 0.7 percent, respectively.
By contrast, trade remained at the bottom in both the first and second quarters. And although the q/q index in its case increased by 4.7 percent, it still remains clearly below the base point – the latest reading is only 91 points.
Bankruptcy declarations also rise
At the same time as the registrations of new companies, the number of declared bankruptcies also increased. In this case, the rise was notably lower – by 1.7 percent q/q. Nonetheless, the index ultimately (seasonally adjusted) reached its highest value since 2018.
Eurostat emphasises that declarations do not necessarily mean a company has closed, but rather serve as an early indicator of business sentiment.
Bankruptcy Declarations, index 2021 = 100
| Q1 2024 | Q2 2024 | Q3 2024 | Q4 2024 | Q1 2025 | Q2 2025 |
| 161.3 | 163.0 | 166.5 | 164.7 | 164.2 | 167.0 |
Source: Eurostat
Bankruptcies in the European Union: where are they rising fastest?
In some countries, the increase in declared bankruptcies is spectacular – the leaders here are Latvia (over 70 percent q/q rise) and Cyprus (nearly 67 percent). However, Eurostat acknowledges that “in small countries, the quarterly absolute numbers concerning bankruptcies are very low, which can cause significant volatility in indicators,” as is the case in the mentioned countries.
By comparison, in larger countries, the increases are far smaller – as is the case, for instance, in Italy (10.7 percent), Hungary (9.3 percent), or Romania (17.7 percent).
The biggest drops in announced bankruptcies, meanwhile, occurred in Estonia (-28.7 percent), Spain (-8.3 percent), Sweden (-8.1 percent), Croatia (-7.1 percent), and Poland (-4.9 percent).
Sector-level trends in bankruptcies
And in the case of the declared bankruptcies index in the transport and storage sector, increases are evident in the second quarter of this year, although they are not as pronounced as those in new business registrations. Quarter-on-quarter, the increase was 3.8 percent, which compared to, say, the information and communication sector (with a 13.6 percent q/q increase) does not seem a significant change.
Across all sectors, transport and storage ranked in the middle of the distribution. It is also far behind the activities related to accommodation and food services, where the largest decrease in bankruptcies was noted – by 7.5 percent q/q.
In general, the bankruptcy index increased in the second quarter of this year in 4 sectors, while it decreased in another 4. In the transport and storage sector, it reached the third-highest index since 2018, which is 178.7. It was worse in the third and fourth quarters of 2024, when results were 190.5 and 179.5, respectively.
