US corporate bankruptcies hit third-largest total in 2009

WASHINGTON: The number of US corporate bankruptcies spiked to 207 last year, the third-largest total on record, led by the massive General Motors filing, a research firm said on Thursday.

BankruptcyData.com said the number of publicly traded companies filing for bankruptcy protection in 2009 jumped significantly from 138 a year earlier.

It was the third-largest total on record, according to the firm, topped only by 2001 and 2002, with 263 and 220 filings, respectively.

The firms filing for creditor protection had combined assets of 594 billion dollars, the second-largest on record. The largest was in 2008, led by the largest-ever US bankruptcy filing from investment giant Lehman Brothers.

The biggest 2009 bankruptcy was General Motors, with listed assets of 91 billion dollars, followed by business lender CIT Group, with 80.5 billion dollars, and Chrysler LLC, with 39.3 billion.

The main industries affected by bankruptcy included manufacturing, banking and finance and the oil and gas sector, the firm said.

The 26 banking and finance firms filing for bankruptcy had combined assets of 249 billion dollars, according to the survey.