TOKYO - The number of corporate bankruptcies in Japan in the first half of 2026 involving debts of at least 10 million yen ($62,000) rose 7.1 percent from a year earlier to 5,346, topping 5,000 for the first time in 12 years, a credit research company survey showed Wednesday.
The figure comes as a weaker yen has accelerated inflation, putting pressure on the finances of businesses, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises, Tokyo Shoko Research said.
With a prolonged labor shortage also acting as a headwind, an official of the research firm warned that "the pace of bankruptcies may accelerate from fall."
Bankruptcies at firms with fewer than 10 employees accounted for 90 percent of the total, while those with liabilities of less than 100 million yen made up nearly 80 percent.
Bankruptcies attributed to rising prices increased 27.6 percent from the same period the previous year to 439, while those tied to labor shortages climbed 37.7 percent to 237. Among those, cases involving surging labor costs jumped to 120, up 2.4-fold.
By industry, bankruptcies rose in eight of 10 sectors, with services leading at 1,819 cases, up 7.2 percent, followed by construction at 1,026.
Restaurants and food retailers have been hit by consumers cutting back, while businesses are increasingly reaching the limit of their ability to pass rising costs on to customers through higher prices, Tokyo Shoko Research said.
Bankruptcies increased in all of Japan's nine regions except for Tohoku in the northeast, led by Hokuriku in central Japan with a 37.3 percent rise, followed by Hokkaido in the north at 17.1 percent.
Looking ahead, the research firm said the situation in the Middle East is already affecting the cash flow of small and medium-sized businesses.
In June alone, bankruptcies rose 20.4 percent from a year earlier to 1,021, exceeding 1,000 for the first time in 25 months.
