Belgium: New businesses registered (number)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2023, Belgium's new businesses registered (number) fell 15.6% on 2022 (from 47,144 to 39,772).

Across the 16 yearly changes before that (2007 to 2022), the average change was +6.2% and a typical year strayed about 14.8% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.5 standard deviations below that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 29.8% in 2016 and the biggest yearly fall was 15.6% in 2023. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2014 to 2023 the straight-line trend is upward, about 2,375 a year. A straight line explains 78% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

Closest to Belgium in the 2023 ranking

• Korea, Rep. — 1st of 5: 128,455
• Chile — 2nd of 5: 123,159
• Austria — 4th of 5: 5,982
• Maldives — 5th of 5: 1,928

What this measures

New businesses registered are the number of new limited liability corporations (or its equivalent) registered in the calendar year.

Limitations: The definition of entrepreneurship used is limited to the formal sector. Yet, it should be noted that the exclusion of the informal sector is based on the difficulties of quantifying the number of firms that compose it, rather than on its relevance for developing economies. Data collected from economies categorized as offshore financial centers by Eurostat are excluded from the analysis, because registered entities in these countries may not fit the objective of the Entrepreneurship Database aiming at measuring formally registered companies with actual economic activities.

All 18 values

New businesses registered (number) in nearby economies

• Albania — 4,126 (2024)
• Armenia — 8,381 (2024)
• Austria — 5,982 (2023)
• Azerbaijan — 14,215 (2024)
• Belarus — 7,820 (2022)
• Bosnia and Herzegovina — 3,369 (2024)
• Bulgaria — 42,783 (2024)
• Croatia — 14,324 (2024)
• Cyprus — 14,444 (2024)
• Czechia — 29,877 (2024)
• Denmark — 25,969 (2024)

More private sector & trade data for Belgium

• Agricultural raw materials imports (% of merchandise imports) — 1.01% (2025)
• Food imports (% of merchandise imports) — 12.82% (2025)
• Fuel imports (% of merchandise imports) — 14.56% (2025)
• Manufactures imports (% of merchandise imports) — 65.82% (2025)
• Ores and metals imports (% of merchandise imports) — 4.99% (2025)
• Agricultural raw materials exports (% of merchandise exports) — 1.17% (2025)
• Food exports (% of merchandise exports) — 13.81% (2025)
• Fuel exports (% of merchandise exports) — 10.2% (2025)
• Manufactures exports (% of merchandise exports) — 69.37% (2025)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Belgium's new businesses registered (number)?

39,772 in 2023, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2006?

It is up 89.49% from 20,989 in 2006 (3.83% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 47,144 in 2022 and the lowest 18,931 in 2013.

Is the latest change in new businesses registered (number) unusual for Belgium?

In 2023, Belgium's new businesses registered (number) fell 15.6% on 2022 (from 47,144 to 39,772). Across the 16 yearly changes before that (2007 to 2022), the average change was +6.2% and a typical year strayed about 14.8% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.5 standard deviations below that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

Where does this data come from?

The World Bank's World Development Indicators, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Entrepreneurship Database, World Bank (WB), uri: https://www.worldbank.org/en/programs/entrepreneurship.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator IC.BUS.NREG, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Entrepreneurship Database, World Bank (WB), uri: https://www.worldbank.org/en/programs/entrepreneurship Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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