Another day, another dose of doom and gloom.

Official figures out this morning show total company bankruptcy numbers were up 25 per cent on last year.

But scratch the surface and it gets even worse. The Insolvency Service said the number of companies placed in administration rose by 50 per cent in the third quarter, as lenders finally begin to get tough with companies they bank.

And receivership appointments — the older process used by lenders to seize control of struggling companies — are up a whopping 238 per cent. Grant Thornton, the accountancy firm, believes the rise could reflect an explosion of property-related problems because receiverships continue to be used when a loan is secured by property.

Corporate woes will be fuelled by the travails of consumers. The Insolvency Service also announced an 8.8 per cent increase in personal insolvencies as 27,087 people went bankrupt in the quarter to September.

The downturn is quickly feeding through from problems in the property and construction sectors, which have been hit by plummeting prices, to the real economy.

Pubs, gyms and any businesses that depend on discretionary spending are already bleeding. It won’t be a happy Christmas for the high street.

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