Rate of Italian business closures rose in 2013 says Istat

(ANSA) - Rome, July 9 - The death rate of Italian businesses rose in 2013 for the third year running to 8.5 percent compared to 8.1 percent in 2012, with business survival rates declining across all sectors from services to construction, national statistics office Istat said on Thursday.
    A total of 333,305 businesses shut down in 2013 under the weight of a deep economic recession, after 320,511 closed their doors in 2012, statistics from Istat showed.
    More than 276,000 businesses were born in 2013, with the birth rate increasing slightly to 7.1 percent from 7.0 percent in 2012.
    The net turnover rate, which measures the difference between the birth rate and the death rate, was negative for the sixth consecutive year, at -1.5 percent in 2013.
    Business survival rates after one year of operations fell to 76.1 percent in 2013 from 81.1 percent in 2012, with the decline affecting all sectors, particularly services.