625 Foreign-Owned Firms in Mecklenburg

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The quest of Charlotte’s leaders to assure a place for the area in the global economy has paid off as the number of foreign firms continues to increase in the region. Charlotte and Mecklenburg County show 625 foreign firms in 2011, an increase of more than 11 percent over the 2010 total. Part of this increase can be attributed to having better resources for identifying foreign firms, and there has also been an influx of new companies to the area. Since the beginning of 2010, the Charlotte Chamber worked with 32 foreign-owned firms that decided to bring their business to Mecklenburg County. Included in this list are companies with a least 50 percent foreign ownership.

Foreign-owned firms in Mecklenburg County represent 45 different countries and employ more than 31,000 workers. The top five countries by number of firms are Germany, United Kingdom, Canada, Japan, and France. These five countries represent 60 percent of the total firms in the county.

More than two-thirds of the region’s 950 foreign firms are located in Mecklenburg County. Germany leads the category with 129 companies, which is 20 percent of the county’s reporting firms. Since 2005, Germany has increased involvement in Mecklenburg by 11 percent, Canada has increased in number of firms by 120 percent and France has increased by nearly 90 percent. Sweden and The Netherlands have also expanded the number of companies in the area. The total number of foreign firms in Mecklenburg has increased by 180 companies since 2005, a growth rate of 40 percent.

The trend of increasing foreign investment is also represented by marking ten-year totals. From 1980 to 1990, foreign investment grew by 103 firms. The trend improved during the decade of 1990 to 2000 with an increase of 131 firms. With a 245-firm increase since 2000, Mecklenburg continues to exceed its previous 10-year numbers.