THE slowdown in the economy is taking a much heavier toll on the corporate sector in Scotland than south of the Border, analysis of official figures shows.
The number of companies going bust jumped by 23% in Scotland in the first quarter of this year, when many firms in areas such as property and hospitality hit the buffers.
These sectors have been grappling with tough conditions since the onset of the credit crunch in 2007.
The Insolvency Service discovered that a total of 432 firms in Scotland went into liquidation, receivership or administration in the period, compared with 351 firms during the same period last year.
By contrast, the number of failures in England increased by 2.5% annually, to 5772 in the first quarter, from 5632 in the same period of 2011.
Business recovery experts at PKF accountants said the statistics revealed the failure rate in Scotland over the past year has been 40% higher than in England and Wales.
They calculate 1% of the total stock of active companies in Scotland failed during the year to March. This was compared with 0.7% in England and Wales.
"We can see that Scotland continues to suffer disproportionately compared to the rest of the UK," said Bryan Jackson, corporate recovery partner with PKF.
Mr Jackson said the data showed businesses in property and related sectors have continued to bear the brunt of the slowdown in Scotland. Firms in areas such as real estate and construction accounted for 55% of the total of all compulsory liquidations.
Hotels, restaurants and bars made up 12.2%.
"The high failure rate in the hospitality sector indicates a reduction in disposable income by individuals who will have experienced static or nominal wage rises coupled with the rising cost of living," said Mr Jackson.
He suggested the difference between the failure rates on either side of the Border may partly reflect the fact Scotland is being hit harder by cuts in public spending than other parts of the UK.
"It's very property-based. Commercial as well as residential. Anything connected with it is struggling," said Mr Jackson.
He added: "The picture is skewed by London which seems to be healthier than the rest of the UK, particularly in terms of property."
Experts at PWC noted the numbers for England and Wales provided evidence of the challenges faced by retailers.
The number of retail insolvencies more than doubled, from 24 in the first quarter of 2011 to 57 in Q1 2012.
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