According to data released by Japan's Tokyo Commerce and Industry Research Company on the 8th, in the first half of fiscal year 2026, the number of bankruptcies of Japanese companies hit a new high since FY2013. According to the data, the number of bankruptcies of companies with debts of 10 million yen or more in Japan was 5,373, an increase of 3.8% year on year, and has been increasing year on year for 5 consecutive years. The total debt of these companies increased 23.5% year over year to 856.169 billion yen. By industry, the number of bankruptcies of enterprises in 6 of the 10 industries counted increased year-on-year. Among them, the service sector had the highest number of bankruptcies, with 1,828, an increase of 3.7% over the previous year; the construction industry ranked second with 1,035. Looking at the causes of bankruptcy, 240 enterprises went bankrupt due to labor shortages, an increase of 17.1% over the previous year, a record high; 436 companies went bankrupt due to rising prices, an increase of 17.8% over the previous year. Regarding future trends, the Tokyo Commerce and Industry Research Company said that as interest rates rise and the end of the year approaches, the number of corporate bankruptcies may increase further in the second half of the fiscal year. The Bank of Japan raised the policy interest rate to about 1.25% in September. The Imperial Database Company of Japan estimates after this rate hike that if corporate loan interest rates rise another 0.25 percentage points from the current level, each company will increase interest expenses by an average of 460,000 yen per year, and current profit will drop by an average of 1.9%.

According to data released by Japan's Tokyo Commerce and Industry Research Company on the 8th, in the first half of fiscal year 2026, the number of bankruptcies of Japanese companies hit a new high since FY2013. According to the data, the number of bankruptcies of companies with debts of 10 million yen or more in Japan was 5,373, an increase of 3.8% year on year, and has been increasing year on year for 5 consecutive years. The total debt of these companies increased 23.5% year over year to 856.169 billion yen. By industry, the number of bankruptcies of enterprises in 6 of the 10 industries counted increased year-on-year. Among them, the service sector had the highest number of bankruptcies, with 1,828, an increase of 3.7% over the previous year; the construction industry ranked second with 1,035. Looking at the causes of bankruptcy, 240 enterprises went bankrupt due to labor shortages, an increase of 17.1% over the previous year, a record high; 436 companies went bankrupt due to rising prices, an increase of 17.8% over the previous year. Regarding future trends, the Tokyo Commerce and Industry Research Company said that as interest rates rise and the end of the year approaches, the number of corporate bankruptcies may increase further in the second half of the fiscal year. The Bank of Japan raised the policy interest rate to about 1.25% in September. The Imperial Database Company of Japan estimates after this rate hike that if corporate loan interest rates rise another 0.25 percentage points from the current level, each company will increase interest expenses by an average of 460,000 yen per year, and current profit will drop by an average of 1.9%.