COVID: Over 300,000 fewer firms in 2020 - Confcommercio

(ANSA) - ROME, DEC 28 - Italy has seen a net loss of almost 305,000 businesses due to COVID-19 in 2020, retail group Confcommercio said Monday.
    This is a fall of 11.3%, it said.
    The fall was due to a COVID-linked 10.8% drop in consumer spending.
    Spending was down 120 billion euros on 2019, Confcommercio said.
    Over 390,000 non-food retail and service firms have closed their doors this year, while some 85,000 new businesses have opened up.
    The end of a government COVID firing freeze risks seeing more than 10% of jobs in small and medium businesses disappearing, a report from the retail group's labour consultants said. (ANSA).