The bankruptcy rate in the Netherlands appears to be stablising and the long-awaited surge in post-coronavirus insolvencies has so far failed to materialise, according to new figures from national statistics agency CBS.

Last month, 292 firms went bust, virtually in line with September’s total, the CBS said.

The bankruptcy rate has been going up slowly since August 2021, but neither the end of coronavirus measures or the increase in interest rates appears to have had much direct impact, the CBS said.

Nevertheless, the number of firms going bust in the first 10 months this year is up 60% on the same period in 2022. Firms operating in the trade and construction sectors accounted for most of the bankruptcies.

In May 2013, at the height of the economic crisis, 911 firms went bust. By August 2021 that had fallen to a record low of 109, as government measures to cushion the impact of the coronavirus lockdowns helped stop companies from going bust.

The central bank said last year it expected the bankruptcy rate to rise once the measures were wound down because some firms which were no longer viable were being kept afloat by the government help.

However, some 27,000 firms are in trouble in paying back deferred taxes and face legal action to recover the debt.