Bankruptcies in Sweden extended their streak of annual increases to 21 months in April, according to data from Creditsafe, which expects no immediate relief even as inflation slows and rate cuts are approaching, Bloomberg News reported. The number of bankruptcies was 72% higher in April than a year ago, the credit reference agency said in a statement. The increase was led by e-commerce, real estate, hotels and restaurants, and 942 companies went bankrupt last month, marking the highest number in a month of April since 1994.

The Czech Republic’s central bank on Thursday cut its key interest rate for the fourth straight time as inflation dropped and the economy showed signs of recovery, the Associated Press reported. The cut by a half-percentage point brought the interest rate down to 5.25%. The move was expected by analysts. The bank started to trim borrowing costs by a quarter-point on Dec. 21, which marked the first cut since June 22, 2022. It continued with a cut by a half-percentage point on Feb. 8 and went on by another half-percentage cut on March 20.

Italy’s mounting pile of debt poses an ongoing hazard to the country and its financial system especially if the economy underperforms, its central bank said in a half-yearly stability assessment, Bloomberg News reported. Just weeks since the government unveiled new projections pointing to an increase in borrowings, officials cited prospects for the public finances as “a risk factor.” That’s arguably stronger language than they used in their two financial stability reports last year.

German tennis legend Boris Becker was discharged from bankruptcy court in London after a judge found Wednesday he had done “all that he reasonably could do” to repay creditors tens of millions of pounds, the Associated Press reported. Becker fell far short of repaying his creditors nearly 50 million pounds ($62.5 million) he owed, but Chief Insolvency and Companies Court Judge Nicholas Briggs said it would be “perverse” not to end the case given the efforts Becker made.

Everton have called in a leading firm of restructuring and insolvency advisers, the Guardian understands, raising further questions about the proposed takeover of the Premier League club by 777 Partners, the Guardian reported. The move came while the club were believed to be waiting for a further £15m of loans that 777 had pledged to provide Everton with during April, according to one 777 source. When asked about that £15m in loans, a 777 spokesperson said that – after a delay – “the club has been provided with the working capital it needs as of today [Tuesday]”.

Europe's economy perked up slightly at the start of the year, recording 0.3% growth in the January-March quarter compared to the last three months of 2023 as the inflation burden on consumers eased and the stagnating German economy, the continent's biggest, started to show modest signs of life, the Associated Press reported. The 20-country eurozone recorded its strongest performance since the third quarter of 2022 and improved on shrinkage of 0.1% in each of the last two quarters of 2023, according to official figures released Tuesday by the European Union's statistical agency Eurostat.

Europe’s economy has a north-south divide—and now it’s the poorer south that is powering the region’s return to growth, according to a Wall Street Journal commentary. Southern Europe, which for decades has had lower growth, productivity and wealth than the north, powered an upside-down recovery on the continent at the start of the year. Buoyant tourism revenue around the Mediterranean helped to offset sluggishness in Europe’s manufacturing heartlands.

Atos said that the French state offered to acquire parts of its big data and security arm for up to 1 billion euros ($1.07 billion), including debt, in a bid to prevent a collapse of the French army contractor and Paris Olympics information-technology partner, the Wall Street Journal reported. The French state’s interest could offer a potential lifeline to a company under pressure to reduce a heavy debt pile after previous attempts to offload the units fell through.

Insolvent Austrian property company Signa Prime Selection, part of the troubled Signa empire, has sold the luxury Hotel Bauer on Venice’s Grand Canal as part of a deal with German industrialist family business Schoeller Group, Signa Prime said on Friday, Reuters reported. Signa, the property group founded by Rene Benko, has become the biggest casualty so far in Europe’s real estate crisis, with creditors filing claims totalling billions of euros.

German inflation accelerated for the first time since December, highlighting warnings by the European Central Bank that there’ll be bumps on the path back to the 2% target, Bloomberg News reported. Price growth came in at 2.4% in April, while economists polled by Bloomberg had expected it to remain steady at 2.3%. Energy was a key driver of the uptick. A similar dynamic was on display in Spain earlier Monday, with inflation quickening to 3.4% after the government continued to remove support that helped keep a lid on soaring energy costs.