There were 149 corporate insolvencies registered in March 2021. Thereof, 25 were for companies that were active in the previous year, i.e. they either had registered employees according to the official PAYE tax registry or turnover according to VAT reports. This is a 36% decrease from March 2020.
Of the 290 companies what were made insolvent in the first quarter of 2021, 49 were active in the previous year, which is a 50% decrease from the same quarter in 2020 when they were 98. Thereof, there were 10 insolvencies in construction (72% decrease), 6 in wholesale and retail trade and vehicle repair (71% decrease), 12 in tourism industries (20% increase) and 21 in other industries (32% decrease).
On average, there were 387 employees in the previous year for companies made insolvent in the first quarter of 2021, which is a 57% decrease from the first quarter of 2020, when they were 897. Judging from the number of employees in the previous year, there was a decreased effect of insolvencies in the first quarter of 2021 in all activities. For instance, the average number of employees in the previous year in construction was 88, which is a 72% decrease from the same period in 2020. In tourism industries, the number was 84, a 36% decrease.
Statistics Iceland publishes monthly updates on insolvencies of registered companies. The number of insolvencies for the latest month are temporary estimates and are subject to change with increased information on insolvency registrations from judicial authorities.