Share of company debt with ICR less than one globally 2019-2021, by sector

The share of global companies with interest coverage ratio of less than one has increased immensely in almost every sector since the beginning of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. In the accomodation and food industry, almost 21 percent of companies worldwide had the ICR ratio of less than one before the coronavirus pandemic. In 2021, the share of companies hardly able to pay interests on their debt increased to over 88 percent.
The ICR (interest coverage ratio) is a financial indicator showing how well a company can pay interests on outstanding debt from their earnings. The higher the indicator, the better the company is rated by the investors or lenders. The minimum acceptable ratio is around 1.5 to two. Below this level, a company is regarded as financially unstable.