300 Companies Gone Bust Since New Year

The economic turmoil has hit Ireland's private sector hard as the number of companies going bust has gone up by 76% for the first half of this year.

More than 300 companies have been wound up, a 76% increase on last year's figures with most of the failing companies being in the construction and engineering sector.

A total of 312 companies went into voluntary liquidation, which is double that of the whole of 2007.

Business consultants Farrell Grant Sparks, which compiled the figures, said the failures were among small developers and sub-contractors and almost also that half of the companies that failed were in Dublin.

There was also a high level of failures in the hospitality sector such as pubs, restaurants and suppliers to the industry, with 42 companies collapsing. Pubs have been under pressure since the introduction of the smoking ban and increases in the price of hops.

Transport and haulage providers accounted for 12 failures - a significant increase in fuel costs were cited as the primary reason.

But the construction industry will be digging itself out of the biggest hole, with recent announcement by the government that it is to cut capital spending by €300 million.

(DW)