S. Korean Corporate Failures Hit Record Low

The number of South Korean corporate bankruptcies fell to a record low in July as companies'' funding conditions remained sound amid the economic recovery, the central bank said Thursday. The number of companies that went belly-up totaled 96 in July, down 13 from the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). The July reading marked the lowest level since the BOK began to compile related data in January 1990, according to South Korea''s (Yonhap) news agency. "Last month, the number of corporate failures hit a record low after builders'' funding situations improved to some degree following the disposal of soured project financing loans," a BOK official said. Meanwhile, the number of newly established companies came in at 5,639 in July, down 348 from a month ago, it added. But the ratio of the number of newly created firms to corporate failures reached 84.2 last month, up from 77.8 in June. It marked the highest level since the BOK started to compile related figures in January 1998. The default rate of corporate bills -- bonds, checks and promissory notes -- reached 0.02% last month, down from 0.04 from the previous month, the BOK said. The BOK upped its projection of the country''s inflation rate to 4% this year from an earlier estimate of 3.9%. The bank, meanwhile, lowered its 2011 growth forecast to 4.3% from an earlier 4.5%. (QNA) ST/AMA