New data from the National Institute of Statistics shows that September closed with 6,735 active commercial companies, a 1.5% drop from September of the previous year. This reflects a turning point in job creation, as the year over year growth seen in the prior eight months comes to a halt this September.
During September, 6,735 new companies were legally established, with more than 278 million euros subscribed in capital. This total is 30.4% lower than September last year, and the average subscribed capital slipped to 41,334 euros, down 29.3% year over year.
While new company formations eased, a higher number of firms dissolved during September, increasing by 12.9% compared with the same month a year earlier, reaching 1,245 dissolutions. In other words, about 42 companies closed their doors in Spain every weekday of September.
Of the 1,245 dissolutions last September, 78.6% were voluntary, 11.5% resulted from mergers, and the remaining 9.9% were due to other reasons.
About 20.3% of commercial companies, 15.6% of the investments created in September were directed to trade, while 15.6% went into real estate, finance and insurance activities.
When looking at dissolution by main economic activity, the highest rates occurred in trade and construction, with 19.4% and 17.8% respectively.
In September, the number of capital increases by commercial companies fell 11.8% to 1,706, with total capital committed exceeding 1.099 billion euros, down 8.7% from September 2022. The average capital increased by 3.5% to 644,553 euros.
For the first nine months of the year, the number of new companies rose 10.1% compared with the same period in 2022, while the tally of closed companies declined by 2.2% up to September.
On a month-to-month basis from August to September, new company formations rose 1.9, yet this represented the smallest September increase in at least five years. The September 2023 figure remained 7.7% lower than September 2022.
Madrid and Catalonia lead while Rioja and Navarre lag
The regions that founded the most companies in September were Madrid with 1,519, Catalonia with 1,176, and Andalusia with 1,166. The regions with the fewest new establishments were La Rioja with 17, Navarre with 46, and Extremadura with 67.
Year over year, seven communities reported growth in new company formations. Castilla-La Mancha led the gains with around 35.4% growth, followed by Castilla y León with 33.5% and Cantabria with 30.8%. Asturias and Extremadura also posted solid increases, 25.7% and 19.6% respectively.
On the flip side, several regions saw declines year over year, notably La Rioja where new company formation fell by about 54.1%, followed by Murcia with 21.3% and Navarra with 13.2%.
In terms of business liquidations by region, Madrid recorded the most dissolutions in September with 303, followed by Andalusia with 229 and the Valencian Community with 118. Conversely, the fewest dissolutions occurred in Navarra with 7, Cantabria with 11, and La Rioja with 12.
Eight communities posted higher levels of job terminations in September compared with the previous year, led by Navarra with a 40% increase and Extremadura with a 38.5% rise. Conversely Cantabria, Castilla-La Mancha and Madrid saw reductions, while Murcia showed no change from September of the prior year.