Company liquidations data continue to show no strong signs of worsening business strain despite the power crisis

Company liquidations continued their declining trend in May . Stats SA data published yesterday revealed that the total number of liquidations declined by a further 6.2% m/m sa in May (Figure 1). On an annual basis, total liquidations were down 19.7% y/y, following an 18.8% fall in April.

Cumulative company liquidations until May this year were down 30% compared with the same period last year, despite the sharp deterioration in electricity supply late last year and this year. According to Absa research, they note that company liquidations are a lagging indicator and may still pick up in the coming releases. But thus far, muted company liquidations data suggest some business resilience against the ongoing electricity supply challenge.