EMBARGOED UNTIL: 12:01 A.M. EDT, JUNE 29, 2000 (THURSDAY)
Public Information Office CB00-102
301-457-3030/301-457-3670 (fax)
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e-mail: pio@census.gov
Paul Zeisset
301-457-4151
Service Industries -- New Economy's Biggest Generator
of Jobs; Mississippi Leads States, Census Bureau Reports
Service industries, one of eight major divisions in the nation's private
nonfarm economy, created 6.4 million new jobs, more than half of all new
jobs, between 1992 and 1997, and Mississippi led the way, according to a
report released today by the Commerce Department's Census Bureau.
"Service industries are the biggest and fastest-growing part of our
economy as measured by jobs," said Census Bureau analyst Paul Zeisset.
"Business services account for much of that growth, but there are some
important exceptions. For example, service industries in Mississippi grew
faster than other states on the strength of hotel and amusement
industries."
The report, Comparative Statistics, compares, at the U.S. and state
levels, 1997 Economic Census results with those from the 1992 Economic
Census.
Taxable and tax-exempt service establishments showed a 24 percent
increase in employment between 1992 and 1997, from 27.4 million to
34.0 million jobs. Most of that growth was among service establishments
subject to federal income tax (19.3 million to 25.5 million jobs, or
32 percent), while tax-exempt service establishments, including most
hospitals, grew at a more modest rate (8.1 million to 8.6 million jobs,
or 6 percent).
Receipts of service establishments climbed 46 percent, from
$1.6 trillion to $2.4 trillion, between 1992 and 1997. (All figures in
the report are presented in current dollars and not adjusted for
inflation. Between 1992 and 1997, consumer prices increased 14 percent
and producer prices, 7 percent.)
Within service industries, the broad subcategory called "business
services" had the biggest dollar growth in receipts among firms subject
to federal income tax, from $275 billion to $529 billion, or 92 percent.
Employment in business services grew 56 percent.
Individual service industries with fast-growing receipts include
data-processing schools (up 197 percent), computer rental and leasing
(160 percent), prepackaged software (152 percent) and help-supply services
(142 percent).
Mississippi led all states in growth of service businesses subject to
federal income tax, with a 66 percent increase in employment (from 108,000
to 180,000) and a 94 percent increase in receipts (from $5.5 billion to
$10.7 billion). Mississippi's receipts in hotels and motels skyrocketed
from $235 million to $1.34 billion. "From another report, we know that
Mississippi's 1997 hotel receipts were dominated by casino hotels," said
Zeisset. "Casino hotels were not separately identifiable in reports for
1992."
Other fast-growing states in service industries were South Carolina,
Colorado, Delaware, Washington and Arizona.
Retail Trade
Nationally, retail sales increased by 34 percent between 1992 and 1997,
to $2.5 trillion. Employment by retailers, on the other hand, went up 15
percent, to 21.2 million employees.
The fastest-growing large retail industries were computer and software
stores (179 percent); mobile home dealers (134 percent); used-car dealers
(116 percent); and catalog and mail-order houses (86 percent).
South Dakota led all states in growth of retail sales between 1992 and
1997, nearly doubling its receipts ($5.1 billion to $9.9 billion). Other
states with fast-growing sales were Nevada, Utah, Arizona and North
Carolina.
Manufacturing
The dollar value of shipments from manufacturing establishments was up
32 percent between 1992 and 1997 (from $3.0 trillion to nearly $4.0
trillion), the largest percentage gain for manufacturers since the 1977 to
1982 period. Job growth was a modest 3.5 percent, but this was the first
five-year period with any job growth in manufacturing in 20 years.
Within manufacturing, the subcategories with the fastest growth in value
of shipments were electronic and other electrical equipment (61 percent)
and industrial machinery and equipment (58 percent), a category that
includes computer manufacturing.
Among individual manufacturing industries, the fastest-growing large
industry was semiconductors and related equipment, which registered a 144
percent increase in shipments.
New Mexico (114 percent), South Dakota (107 percent) and Nevada
(102 percent) had triple-digit growth in the value of their manufactured
shipments, but all three started from relatively low levels of
manufacturing.
New Mexico's manufacturing growth was led by electronic and electrical
equipment; South Dakota's by industrial equipment, including computers;
and Nevada's by paper and allied products.
As for dollar increases in shipments of manufactures, Texas, up
$89 billion to $302 billion, outgained California, whose $84 billion
increase put it at $390 billion, although California remains the state
with the most manufacturing shipments and the highest manufacturing
employment.
Bridging Old and New Industry Classifications
This report defines industries according to the 1987 Standard Industrial
Classification (SIC) system. Use of the SIC system is being discontinued
because SIC groupings have become outdated by changes in the economy. Most
of the detailed data from the 1997 Economic Census are reported in the new
North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) categories,
including the only data for metropolitan areas, counties, cities and ZIP
Codes. Nonetheless, Comparative Statistics reports data in terms of the
old SIC system to provide historical comparability with earlier census
data.
The relationship between NAICS and SIC categories is explored in a
companion report titled Bridge Between NAICS and SIC, also just released.
The data in the report are subject to nonsampling error from sources
such as errors of response, nonreporting and coverage. Further details
concerning survey design, methodology and data limitations are available
in the full report.
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