The number of bankruptcies among publicly traded U.S. companies has climbed to the highest first-quarter level for five years, according to a Reuters analysis yesterday of data from research firm bankruptcompanynews.com. Plunging prices of crude oil and other commodities is one of the major reasons for the increased filings, and bankruptcy experts said that a more aggressive stance by lenders may also be hurting some companies. While U.S. stocks have climbed to near record levels and the jobless rate has fallen to a six-year low, 26 publicly traded U.S. corporations filed for bankruptcy in the first three months of 2015. The number doubled from 11 in the first quarter of last year and was the highest since 27 in the first quarter of 2010, which was in the immediate aftermath of the financial crisis. Six companies had reported at least a billion dollars in assets when they filed in the first quarter of this year, the most in the first quarter of any year since 2009. Click here for the full analysis.
To hear the latest on trends emerging in business and consumer bankruptcy filings, important cases and perspectives from experts and officials including Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), be sure to attend ABI’s 33rd Annual Spring Meeting.
