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10 December 2019

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In 2017, 190 000 companies were classified as high-growth enterprises. Together, they provide work for 16.4 million employees.

These enterprises account for over one tenth (11.3%) of all active enterprises with at least ten employees in the business economy in the European Union (EU). This share increased by 2.1 percentage points compared with 2014 (9.2%).

Looking at a breakdown by economic activity, high-growth enterprises were more predominant in the service sectors than in the rest of the EU business economy in 2017.

The highest proportion of high-growth enterprises was in the ‘Information and communication’ sector (17.0% of active enterprises in this sector), followed by ‘Administrative and support service activities” (15.3%), ‘Transportation and storage’ (14.0%) and ‘Professional, scientific and technical activities’ (12.7%).

 

High growth enterprises by economic sectors in the EU, 2017.png

The source dataset can be found here.

 

Highest share of high-growth enterprises in Ireland

In 2017, the distribution of high-growth enterprises varied considerably between EU Member States. The highest proportion of high-growth enterprises among all active enterprises with at least 10 employees was recorded in Ireland (16.5%), followed by Spain (15.0%), Portugal (14.2%), the Netherlands (13.9%), Malta (13.7%) and Sweden (13.6%).

At the opposite end of the scale, the lowest shares were registered in Cyprus (2.7%, 2016 data) and Romania (2.9%), followed by Greece (6.7%), Estonia (7.2%) and Austria (7.8%).

 

High growth enterprises in the EU Member States, 2017

The source dataset can be found here.

 

Compared with 2014, the proportion of high-growth enterprises among all active enterprises with at least 10 employees increased in most EU Member States. The highest increases were recorded in Portugal (from 8.6% in 2014 to 14.2% in 2017, or an increase of 5.6 percentage points (pp)), Spain (+5.5 pp) and Slovenia (+5.4 pp).

In contrast, this share decreased in five EU Member States: Estonia and the United Kingdom (both -1.4 pp), Germany (-1.1 pp, 2012 data instead of 2014), Latvia (-0.9 pp) and Lithuania (-0.8 pp).

 

High-growth enterprises contribute to employment most in Ireland, Portugal and Spain

High-growth enterprises have a significant impact on employment*. In 2017, about 1 in 5 employees of enterprises with 10 or more employees was employed in high-growth enterprises in Ireland (24.7%), Portugal (23.1%), Spain (22.3%) and the Netherlands (21.8%).

In contrast, the lowest shares were registered in Cyprus (4.5%, 2016 data), followed at a distance by Romania (7.7%), Austria (8.6%) and France (9.4%).

* Belgium, Denmark and Poland: no data due to confidentiality. Cyprus and Malta: 2016 data instead of 2017.

 

Note: High-growth companies were identified using the criteria of average annualised growth in employee numbers of more than 10% per year over a three-year period and having at least 10 employees when this growth began. High-growth enterprises play an important role in contributing to economic growth and job creation.

 

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