The Washington Post and The Hill reported on May 23 that a new report shows that the number of U.S. companies filing for bankruptcy has continued to increase so far this year, with more than 230 as of April. U.S. media said the situation of U.S. corporate bankruptcies will certainly continue to worsen as economic pressures continue to mount, if a U.S. debt default cannot be avoided.

　　According to a report by Standard & Poor's Global Market Intelligence, 236 large U.S. companies have filed for bankruptcy in the first four months of this year, which is more than twice as many as in 2022 and the highest for the same period since 2010. The worst affected are companies that sell products directly to consumers, followed by industrial companies and then financial services companies. In recent weeks, several large, well-known companies with hundreds or thousands of employees have even filed for bankruptcy protection.

　　Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics, said the number of U.S. corporate bankruptcies is increasing as U.S. interest rates rise and government epidemic support programs for businesses largely end, "making the problem obviously worse if a default on U.S. debt cannot be avoided." Zandi also said that even the short-term failure to repay government debt will make the U.S. economy into recession, while long-term default will be "catastrophic" and will trigger a "tsunami of bankruptcy.