Businesses in distress

Over 12,500 businesses in the North East are now classed at being in ‘financial distress’ as the third lockdown bites

Business rescue and recovery specialist, Begbies Traynor, says the number of firms facing financial problems in the region has surged by 31% since the end of 2019 – a year-on-year increase of almost 3,000 businesses.

Distress levels, it says, rose by 14% in the last three months of the year on the previousquarter,withafurther 1,500 companies hit.

The research also found that almost all of the 22 sectors monitored displayed a double-digitincreasein‘significant’ distress year-onyear – and the picture was similarly bleak nationally, despite the Government’s package of financial support measures.

In the North East, some oftheworsthitsectorswere travel,tourismandproperty.