In the first half of 2026

Balance between the number of companies incorporated and dissolved decreased compared with the same period of the previous year

According to data provided by the Directorate-General for Justice Policy (DGPJ) to Statistics Portugal (INE), in the first half of 2026, the number of companies incorporated (701) headquartered in the Autonomous Region of Madeira was higher than the number of companies dissolved (259), resulting in a positive balance of 442 companies. Compared with the same period of the previous year, there were 139 fewer incorporations and 85 more dissolutions, with the balance in the first half of 2025 having been +666.

Breaking down the data by Economic Activity (CAE Rev. 4) of the companies, it can be seen that the positive overall balance in the first half of 2026 was driven mainly by "Accommodation and food service " (+81), "Construction" (+63), "Real estate activities" (+57), "Consultancy, scientific, technical and similar activities" (+47), "Administrative and support service activities" (+31), "Arts, entertainment and recreation activities" (+30), "Human health and social work activities" (+24) and "Manufacturing" (+20).

In the reference period, the number of incorporations was higher than the number of dissolutions in all municipalities of the Autonomous Region of Madeira (ARM): in Funchal (398 incorporations against 182 dissolutions), Santa Cruz (89 against 18), Machico (48 against 5), Câmara de Lobos (54 against 28), Ribeira Brava (25 against 5), Calheta (23 against 4), Ponta do Sol (21 against 5), Santana (15 against 4), São Vicente (11 against 4), Porto Santo (10 against 3) and Porto Moniz (7 against 1).

Lastly, it should be noted that, in the first six months of the year, the ratio between incorporations and dissolutions in the ARM was 2.71, lower than the figure observed for the country as a whole (3.43).

Narrowing the scope of the analysis to the second quarter of 2026, the balance between incorporations and dissolutions of companies in this period was +201 (344 incorporations against 143 dissolutions). In the same period of the previous year, the balance had been +328 (407 incorporations against 79 dissolutions).

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