Highlights
- The number of bankruptcies fell by 7.7% (to a total of 466) in the Quebec City census metropolitan area (CMA) in the first quarter of 2013.
- The drop in the number of consumer bankruptcies (-8.5%) more than offset the increase in the corporate sector (+2.9%).
- The Capitale-Nationale recorded a total of 455 bankruptcies in the first quarter of 2013, for an annual drop of 7.5%.
- In the Chaudière-Appalaches region, the number of bankruptcies declined by 11.9% to a total of 208.
- The province of Quebec recorded 6,531 bankruptcies in the first quarter, an annual decrease of 2.8%. In Canada as a whole, 17,441 consumers and businesses filed for bankruptcy, down 8.8%.
Commentary
Consumers are in good financial health in the Quebec City CMA. In the first quarter, 430 individuals filed for bankruptcy, down 40 from a year ago (-8.5%). The addition of 6,100 jobs in the first quarter, the increase in disposable income per capita and low interest rates are all favourable factors putting downward pressure on the number of consumer bankruptcies.
The picture for businesses remained virtually unchanged. In the first quarter of 2013, the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcies recorded 36 bankruptcy filings, up from 35 in the same period of 2012 (+2.9%). However, the first quarter was one of the best in the past seven years. The completion of several major construction projects, combined with ongoing efforts to obtain new contracts, boost innovation capacity and develop export markets have had a favourable effect within the industrial sector.
Louis Gagnon
Senior Economist
Quebec International
