On July 8th Babcock Borsig, a German engineering company, went bust after it failed to persuade its banks to prop it up (see article).

ECONOMIST: European companies

Last year saw a record number of bankruptcies: as well as thousands of small firms, household names, such as Mr Kirch's companies, Babcock Borsig, an engineering firm, and Herlitz, a stationery maker, were brought down.

ECONOMIST: There is no quick way out of the quagmire for Germany's banks