Business bankruptcy filings leap in 2008

The number of firms seeking protection rose by 45 percent in the first half of the year. WASHINGTON -- Driven by a sour economy and skittish consumers, U.S. business bankruptcies saw their sharpest quarterly rise in two years, jumping 17 percent in the second quarter of 2008, according to an analysis by McClatchy Newspapers. Commercial filings for the first half of 2008 are up 45 percent from last year, as the national climate for commerce continues to deteriorate amid rising energy and food costs, mounting job losses, tighter credit and a reticence among consumers to part with discretionary income. From April through June, 15,471 U.S. businesses sought protection in bankruptcy court, according to data from Automated Access to Court Electronic Records, an Oklahoma City bankruptcy management and data company. States that saw... [read full story]