The number of Canadian consumers and businesses going bust soared nearly 47 per cent in December as the domestic economy continued to show signs of further trouble ahead.
The Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy says 8,299 individuals and businesses went bankrupt in December, up from 5,659 for December 2007, a jump of 46.7 per cent.
“There’s no brakes on the train and it’s going downhill faster and faster,” said Douglas Hoyes, a bankruptcy trustee with Hoyes, Michalos & Associates.
However, the December total was down 4.3 per cent from the 8,669 who filed for bankruptcy in November.
CIBC economist Benjamin Tal predicts the results will only worsen in the new year, pushed higher by the rising unemployment rate.
