by business editor Trevor Sturgess

The number of businesses going bust fell in June.

Experian's latest business insolvency index revealed that just 0.07% of south east firms failed - a small improvement on the 0.08% in June 2011.

Both figures were slightly better than the national average of 0.08% and 0.09% respectively.

Some 241 businesses across the region plunged into insolvency, a fifth (20.7%) lower than a year ago.

Nationally, 1,650 businesses became insolvent in June 2012, compared to 1,841 in May 2012 and 1,783 in June 2011.

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) with between one and 100 employees were the only group to see improvements in their insolvency rates, with the biggest improvement coming from SMEs with 51 to 100 employees – from 0.19 per cent in June 2011 to 0.12 per cent in June this year.

There was a slight increase in the insolvency rate of bigger businesses with more than 100 employees.

Firms with 101 - 500 employees experienced a 0.16% per cent failure rate, compared to 0.08% in June last year.

Firms with more than 500 employees saw an increase in insolvency rate from 0.12% in June last year to 0.15% in June this year.

Max Firth, managing director of Experian Business Information Services, said: "Although the overall figures for June show a fairly stable environment at the moment led by smaller firms, the higher insolvency rate at the top end of the business world will have an impact on the supply chain.

"When taking on new business, it is vital they start to monitor the health of both customers and suppliers. They can be forewarned of any issues and be in a better position to deal with the impact of another business’s failure."

Scotland fared better than elsewhere, with fewer insolvencies, while Yorkshire and the West Midlands were the only regions to record increases.

Of the UK’s five biggest industries - the leisure/hotel and the building/construction sectors saw the biggest improvements – from May 2012 and also compared to June 2011.

For firms in the leisure/hotel sector – this is the third consecutive month of falling insolvencies.