The line graph compares the number of shop closures and new shop openings in a country between 2011 and 2018.
Overall, shop openings showed a downward trend over the period, while closures fluctuated significantly, with a dramatic drop in 2015. Although more shops opened than closed at the beginning, this pattern reversed in the later years.
In 2011, approximately 8,500 new shops opened, compared with around 6,500 closures. Openings then fell sharply to about 4,000 in 2012, before rising steadily to roughly 6,200 in 2014. After that, the figure declined again, ending at just 3,000 openings in 2018, the lowest point recorded.
Closures, by contrast, decreased slightly from 6,500 in 2011 to 6,000 in 2012, then peaked at around 7,200 in 2013. Following a moderate fall in 2014, the number plunged dramatically to about 500 in 2015. This was followed by a strong recovery, with closures rising to just over 5,000 in 2016 and remaining relatively stable until 2018.
In summary, while shop openings steadily declined overall, closures were highly volatile, particularly in the mid-period.