Last month saw a 45% year-on-year reduction in company failures with 89 insolvencies noted, compared to 162 in the same month last year.

Fresh calls have been made for a solution to the consumer debt problem, with new figures showing a 56% year-on-year increase in money awarded to the banks in bad debt court judgments in the first quarter.

For this week’s Small Business column Kehlan Kirwan looks at what you should look out for before going out on that journey to start a business.

The first month of the year saw a 16% increase in new companies being formed in Ireland, with a total of 3,713 — or an average of 132 per day — being established.

Last year saw the highest number of company formations in seven years and the lowest number of insolvencies for five years.

This year should see more than 17,000 new company formations; the largest single-year total since 2007.

Consumers and businesses are “slowly navigating” their way out of debt, with new figures showing a marked reduction in debt judgments being registered in the courts and an increasing willingness to negotiate with and pay creditors.

More than 15,000 companies have been formed in Ireland already this year with levels already approaching the full-year total for 2013.

This year has seen the largest number of new company establishments since 2007, with further falls in insolvency rates also noted.

More than 12,000 companies have been established in Ireland so far this year, marking the return, for the first time, to pre-recession start-up levels.

Over 1,500 companies were established last month, figures show, representing a seven-year high for this time of the year.

An increase in the number of new companies established in the first half of the year, combined with a reduction in the number of insolvencies are "the hallmarks of an economic recovery", according to a business risk analysis firm.

There has been a reduction in the number and value of judgments against consumers indicating that there has been a stabilisation in the economy.

The number of new ventures continues to rise as an average of 127 start-ups were registered every day in the first quarter of 2014.

The number of construction companies to go out of business has halved since 2008, with total insolvencies falling by a third in 12 months, latest figures show.

The number of companies being declared insolvent dropped by almost a third last month, according to figures released by Vision-net.

The start-up community is continuing to boom, with more than 1,500 companies incorporated in January, the highest number in six years.

There was an almost 20% fall in the number of insolvencies in all sectors across the economy this year, as over 15,000 companies were formed.

The Irish credit union movement has pursued members through the courts for debts of nearly €35m over the last three years.

The number of firms becoming insolvent has dropped by 18% during 2013, according to research carried out by business and credit risk analyst Vision-net.

Charleville Credit Union in Co Cork has secured €1,043,718 in court judgments against 16 individuals so far this year — the highest of any union.

The number of companies failing is dropping.

The level of corporate failures dropped by a third in October compared with the same month last year, while there was a marginal increase in the number of company start-ups over the same period, according to credit risk analysis firm Vision-net.

There has been a 25% drop in the number of insolvencies in the third quarter of the year - compared to the same period last year.

The number of new companies established in July amounted to 1,014 — 24% up on the same month last year and the highest figure witnessed since 2008.

An average of over 100 companies per day commenced trading in July, according to new figures.

There has been an almost 20% decline in the number of business going bust in the first six months of this year compared to the same period last year.

Half of pubs are in danger of closing, it has emerged.

Courts awarded €44m to banks, the Revenue Commissioners, credit unions and professional services companies who sought orders on unpaid debts last month.

The motor trade has been described as being among the weakest sectors of the economy.

A third of all car dealerships could be in danger of collapse, according to a survey of the industry.

Women are playing a strong role in getting Ireland's economy back on track, according to a survey carried out by vision-net.ie.

Just 21% of senior business roles in Ireland are filled by women — even less than was the case four years ago.

A total of 140 companies collapsed in February, but the first two months of 2013 have seen significant annualised declines in business failure rates.

The number of businesses collapsing this month is down by 32% compared to the same month last year, according to business and credit risk analyst Vision-net.

One third of retailers could be in danger of collapse, according to credit-risk firm Vision-net.

Nearly a third of retailers are in danger of collapsing according to Vision-net which has probed the accounts of more than 5,500 retailers.

Lingering personal debts will strangle cashflow and delay economic recovery, warns Christine Cullen

More Irish companies opened for business than shut up shop this year, with 8% of the start-ups in the IT sector.

There was a €31 million increase in the value of court-registered judgments against debtors in the last month.

An average of almost seven Irish companies went bust every day from October 1-25, according to the latest figures from the credit risk analysis firm Vision-net.

More than 100 new companies began trading each day last month, according to new figures from Vision-net, a business and credit risk analyst company.