The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) saw a nearly 12 percent increase in business name registrations from January to May compared to the previous year, driven by robust demand among entrepreneurs venturing into wholesale and retail trade.

Data gathered by the DTI’s business name registration system (BRNS) showed that business name filings in the first five months stood at 622,706, higher than the 557,454 recorded in the same period last year.

More than 84 percent, or 525,397, of the applications by the end of May were new registrations, while the remaining 97,309 were renewals.

The wholesale and retail trade sector, which includes the repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles and personal and household goods, accounted for the largest share at 56.4 percent, with 351,067 registrations.

The accommodation and food service activities sector ranked second with 83,537 applications, followed by real estate activities with 34,722 registered business names.

By region, Calabarzon stood out as the country’s entrepreneurial hotspot during the five-month period, with a total of 110,147 business name filings or nearly 18 percent of the total.

This was followed by Central Luzon with 82,677 registrations, while Metro Manila was close behind with 78,338 applications.

For the month of May alone, business name filings increased slightly to 79,165 from 79,105 in April, which was the lowest monthly tally so far this year.

Of the business names registered during the month, 70,750 were new registrations, while 8,415 were renewals.

Based on DTI data, the bulk or 83 percent of the business name filings by the end of May were submitted online, totaling 518,037.

Nearly 16 percent or 89,181 of the business names were filed through a hybrid scheme, while the remaining 7,346 were completed through walk-in applications.

Last year, business name registrations with the DTI declined by 3.8 percent to 1.02 million from 1.06 million in 2023.