Japan Oct corporate bankruptcies up 13.4 pct yr/yr

TOKYO, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Japan's corporate bankruptcies rose 13.4 percent in October from a year earlier to 1,429 cases, hitting the highest level this year as more construction and property firms collapsed amid the global credit crunch, a research firm said on Tuesday.

October logged a record eight listed companies going bankrupt, with seven of them in the real estate and construction-related industries, Tokyo Shoko Research said. The number of retailers and transportation firms that went under was also the highest this year.

"Factors that push up costs such as high oil prices are taking a breather for now, but still, the earnings recovery is delayed due to the time lag," Tokyo Shoko said. "As the economy deteriorates, we expect corporate bankruptcy to stay at a high level until the full-scale economy-boosting measures penetrate." Total debt involved more than doubled from a year earlier to 1.01 trillion yen ($10.3 billion), exceeding 1 trillion yen in October for the first time in six years.

The failure of mid-sized insurer Yamato Life Insurance Co and real estate investment trust New City Residence Investment Corp accounted for 38 percent of the debt.

Tokyo Shoko noted that the number of employees at failed firms is on the rise and that smaller regions are seeing more bankruptcies.

"It is a concern that an economic slowdown will worsen employment and consumer spending, the pillars of domestic demand, and will hurt the already battered regional businesses even more," the research firm said. (Reporting by Sachi Izumi)