Insee Focus · September 2021 · n° 246

The fall in the number of business start-ups in the spring of 2020, followed by the strong rebound, was felt in all areas

Business start-ups fell across the country in the spring of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. They then rose sharply in the second half of the year, particularly in the most populous departments. Indeed, certain sectors that are especially heavily represented in these departments were stimulated by these extraordinary circumstances, such as deliveries. However, the pandemic put the stoppers on other sectors within these departments, such as passenger transport.