Companies in Japan go bankrupt at a pace unseen since 2003

According to the data released on Wednesday Japan saw a horrific increase of corporate bankruptcies during the fiscal year ended March 31. Meantime the number of companies to go out of the business was the highest in any year since the end of World War II.

The reports based on the data provided by Tokyo Shoko Research Ltd. revealed that bankruptcies rose by 12% to 16,146 during the fiscal year, the third straight year of increase. The figures were the highest since 2003 according to the data tracking company. The research covered companies with debts of at least 10 million yen ($100.34 million).

In March alone an increase in corporate bankruptcies stood for 14.1% with 1,537 companies gone of business. In terms of industry the biggest percentage of bankruptcies fell upon transportation (33%), followed by the real estate industry (30%) and information and communication sector (29%).