The number of businesses entering administration or being closed down in Scotland has fallen over the past year, according to recent data.
Figures from accountancy giant KPMG showed that 159 firms collapsed in the first three months of the year. This is down from the figure of 294 recorded in the same period last year. The vast majority of the collapses in the first quarter of 2013 were attributed to liquidations, which stood at 122, a 54 per cent decline on last year's figure. Meanwhile, administrations and receiverships rose from 30 to 37.
Head of restructuring for KPMG in Scotland, Blair Nimmo, commented on the figures: "Significantly, fewer smaller companies are going out of business year-on-year, while the total number of corporate insolvencies has decreased by a third in the last six months.
"However, these figures would also be viewed as slightly misleading in that the key factor in the downward trend, especially in relation to liquidations, is the very significant drop in HMRC appointments."
We would be wary of suggesting that the figures signal a return to secure economic growth, however. Rather, they signal the acceptance by a majority of businesses of a lower level of stability. As Mr Nimmo explained: “I sense that many businesses are accepting that the economy as it stands is unlikely to change materially in the short term – that in effect 'now is the new norm' – and have cut their cloth accordingly.”
The research comes as a study from the Chartered Institute of Marketing has found that businesses are becoming more optimistic about their future. The survey found that nearly 40 per cent of marketing professionals surveyed were confident that the performance of their business will improve during the next 12 months, while just a fifth thought that things will get worse.
The path of recovery remains far from certain, but news that there are pockets of recovery in the UK markets suggests that there are some new opportunities emerging for savvy business buyers. 
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