More companies were formed in Suffolk in 2018 than in any previous year, figures show.
Despite political and economic uncertainty around Brexit, the county saw a 3.5% rise in new companies registered.
The figures were taken from Companies House and Office for National Statistics data and compiled by Ipswich-based company secretarial software specialists Inform Direct.
In terms of new companies, 4,292 were registered in the county compared to 4,145 in 2017, bringing the total number of registered companies in Suffolk to 35,510, up from 33,994 at the end of 2017, which equates to 4.5% growth.
MORE – Profits soar at flour mill as it moves more towards retail marketThis compares with 3,166 companies in Suffolk dissolved in 2018, with the numbers of companies formed outstripping those dissolved in each month of the year.
Ipswich formed the most new businesses (963), followed by Suffolk Coastal (649) and St Edmundsbury (640). Mid Suffolk saw 616 formed, Waveney 553, Babergh 492 and Forest Heath 376.
The figures put Suffolk in 37th place in the national rankings of total number of companies, with London in first place (1,163,777), Greater Manchester second (184,396), West Midlands third (167,807), Essex fourth (122,421) and West Yorkshire fifth (118,705). Suffolk ranked 37th nationally, two places below Norfolk (37,466).
John Korchak, director of operations at Inform Direct said: “These record high figures for new company formations in Suffolk show a very positive picture for business against a background of political and economic uncertainty.
“It is clear that the county continues to provide a supportive environment, both for new business ventures and existing enterprises.
“It is heartening to see entrepreneurs making their mark with increasing numbers of new businesses being formed. This picture is mirrored elsewhere in the UK, with a number of regions seeing more new formations in 2018 than at any time in their history and the UK as a whole achieving a new record total of registered companies.”
Across the UK as a whole, a record number of new companies were formed – 669,855 compared with 634,116 in 2017.
The figures also revealed a higher density of firms in Suffolk compared to the national average, at 48.6 per 1,000 people, compared to the UK average of 68.1 firms per 1,000 people.
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