Berlin: Business bankruptcies in Germany reached 17,605 last year, the highest since 2005, affecting approximately 170,000 jobs, the Halle Institute for Economic Research (IWH) reported on Thursday.

According to Anadolu Agency - English, an IWH report showed that bankruptcy filings by companies and partnerships in Germany rose by 17% in December compared to the same month in 2024, reaching 1,519. It noted that the number of bankruptcies in December was 75% higher than the average for December in the years 2016-2019, before the pandemic.

The institute's statement underlined that even during the 2009 global financial crisis, this figure was about 5% lower. The German economy remains fragile due to persistent weakness in the manufacturing sector, which plays a larger role than in other countries in the region.

The country's economy contracted by 0.2% in the second quarter after growing by 0.3% in the first quarter. The economy narrowly avoided entering a technical recession in the third quarter of the year, with growth figures reported at 0%.

High energy costs, weak global orders, and high US tariffs are negatively impacting the country's economy.