The number of zombie companies in the Region of Murcia already exceeds a thousand, that is, companies that are not capable of covering their financial expenses with their results, including those that are registered in the Mercantile Registry that do not carry out commercial activity and that do not publish annual accounts. Exactly, a total of 1,058 entities of this type are counted, according to the latest study published a few days ago by the firm Informa D&B entitled ‘Zombie companies in Spain’.
In comparison with the figures registered in the work carried out two years ago, an increase of 7.74% is reflected, since at that time there were 982 in the Community. This is an evident rising rate but, in any case, it is among the lowest by autonomies, along with a group that includes Extremadura (+3.53%), Galicia (+6.31%) and Castilla- La Mancha (+6.86%). Slightly above Castilla y León (+8.71%). A separate mention deserves Asturias, the only territory in the country that reduces this type of merchant in a situation of extreme vulnerability, with an adjustment of -5.65%
In 2023, Informa D&B – a leading company in the provision of commercial, financial, sectoral and marketing information – identified up to 48,049 zombie companies in Spain, which represent 3.67% of the total number of active companies, according to its database, from sources such as the Official Mercantile Registry Gazette (Borme), Official Account Deposits, BOE. And its evolution in the last two years marks a notable growth of 21.46%, when quantifying then 39,560 signatures. Therefore, it has increased by 8,489 between 2021 and 2023, although the biggest jump was between 2021 and 2022, as a result of the negative effects of the pandemic crisis.
After the real estate branch, more vulnerable companies appear in commerce and industry, while only 2.93% are from agriculture
With regard to the communities with the highest percentage increases in inactive merchants or that present a low or even negative profitability, as they are unable to generate enough resources to face the financial costs involved in repaying their debts in the short and medium term In first place appears Cantabria, with a rise of 56.48%, followed by the Canary Islands (41.08%), La Rioja (39.04%) and Catalonia (38.34%). It is followed by Madrid, with a rise of 29.59%, and just behind are the Balearic Islands (29.1%), the Basque Country (20.49%), Navarra (20.43%), the Valencian Community (16.61% ), Aragon (15.16%) and Andalusia (13.66%).
When analyzing the data by productive sectors, it can be seen that zombie companies have a preponderant weight in construction and related activities, since they account for more than one in four existing ones (28.49%), especially in the branch of real estate activities, which concentrates in itself 20.34% of the total. The second sector with more companies of this type is commerce (20.36%). Then come business activities (13.8%) and industry (11.47%). And where the weight is much less is in agriculture (2.93%) and transport (3.95%).
It is also especially significant that 83.23% of the companies classified as zombies are micro-enterprises, while only 2.83% consist of large companies. On the other hand, the remaining 4.31% correspond to medium-sized organizations. Therefore, it is undeniable that the phenomenon of these companies occurs in all corporate segments.
The economic crisis as a result of the effects of the pandemic caused the problem to worsen especially between 2021 and 2022
However, the report highlights that since there is no official definition as such for zombie companies, a synthesis of the criteria established by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the Bank of Spain has been used. . Thus, companies with an interest coverage ratio of less than 1 for two consecutive years and more than 10 years old, which have been compared with companies with the same characteristics, are considered zombies. In this way, the more than a thousand companies with these determined characteristics in the Region have been counted, and another 16,605 companies within the established control group.
Only 6% cease their permanent activity
Of course, in terms of volume, Madrid and Catalonia have the highest absolute numbers of zombie companies, with 9,323 and 9,082, respectively. And it is that between the two they represent about 40%. Murcia represents 2.2%. On the other hand, La Rioja occupies the last place, with 463 signatures, without counting Ceuta and Melilla.
Regarding the evolution of zombie companies in the last year, according to the study, it stands out that 46.09% have not improved their situation and remain in this condition. However, almost 48% do not currently show signs of over-indebtedness. And, finally, only 6.27% of those identified in 2022 have definitively ceased their activity, officially or unofficially.
Many of these companies do not end up disappearing due to the continuous refinancing of their debt. Although their existence becomes an anomaly, since they move in an unreal present and in an uncertain future, since the risks of non-payment skyrocket with respect to the rest of the productive fabric.
#Companies #activity #continue #rise #exceed #thousand #Region