The number of firms in the Netherlands has risen 32.5% to almost 594,000 in the last 10 years according to government statistics office CBS.

Nearly 66% of these companies were started less than 10 years ago. The last three years has seen a record number of new companies, largely in the construction and business services sectors, said the CBS.
The growth is mainly due to an increase in small companies (fewer than 10 employees). The number of firms with over 100 workers has fallen considerably in the same period.