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The number of Asian-owned businesses grew 24 percent between 1997 and 2002, approximately twice the national average for all businesses. The 1.1 million businesses generated more than $326 billion in revenues, up 8 percent from 1997. This is according to a new report, Survey of Business Owners: Asian-Owned Firms: 2002 [PDF], released today by the U.S. Census Bureau.
“The robust revenues of Asian-owned firms and the growth in the number of businesses provide yet another indicator that minority entrepreneurs are at the forefront as engines for growth in our economy,” said Census Bureau Director Louis Kincannon.
Nearly half (47 percent) of all Asian-owned firms were Chinese-owned (290,197) and Asian Indian-owned (231,179). Korean-owned firms were the third largest at 158,031, followed by Vietnamese- (147,081), Filipino- (128,223) and Japanese-owned firms (86,863).
Almost 1-in-3 of all Asian-owned firms had paid employees. These 319,300 businesses employed more than 2.2 million people and generated revenues of nearly $291 billion.
Other highlights:
State | Firms (number) |
Percent of total |
Receipts (billion dollars) |
Percent of total |
---|---|---|---|---|
California | 371,415 | 33.6 | 125.6 | 38.5 |
New York | 145,519 | 13.2 | 30.4 | 9.3 |
Texas | 77,980 | 7.1 | 20.6 | 6.3 |
New Jersey | 51,948 | 4.7 | 18.5 | 5.7 |
Hawaii | 44,969 | 4.1 | 12.6 | 3.9 |
Illinois | 44,480 | 4.0 | 14.6 | 4.5 |
Florida | 41,278 | 3.7 | 11.2 | 3.4 |
County | Firms (number) |
Receipts (billion dollars) |
---|---|---|
Los Angeles County, Calif. | 140,411 | 52.5 |
Queens County, N.Y. | 48,241 | 5.5 |
Orange County, Calif. | 46,015 | 11.3 |
Honolulu County, Hawaii | 35,376 | 9.8 |
City | Firms (number) |
Receipts (billion dollars) |
---|---|---|
New York, N.Y. | 112,853 | 22.0 |
Los Angeles, Calif. | 47,714 | 19.5 |
Honolulu, Hawaii | 22,394 | 7.1 |
San Francisco, Calif. | 19,639 | 5.4 |
San Jose, Calif. | 16,233 | 6.1 |
Houston, Texas | 15,966 | 5.5 |
Group | Firms (number) |
Percent of total |
Receipts (billions of dollars) |
Percent of total |
---|---|---|---|---|
Asian-owned firms | 1,104,189 | (X) | 326.4 | (X) |
Chinese | 290,197 | 26.3 | 106.3 | 32.6 |
Asian Indian | 231,179 | 20.9 | 89.0 | 27.3 |
Korean | 158,031 | 14.3 | 46.9 | 14.4 |
Vietnamese | 147,081 | 13.3 | 15.7 | 4.8 |
Filipino | 128,223 | 11.6 | 14.6 | 4.5 |
Japanese | 86,863 | 7.9 | 30.6 | 9.4 |
Other Asian | 71,439 | 6.5 | 20.3 | 6.2 |
The 2002 Survey of Business Owners (SBO) defines Asian-owned businesses as firms in which Asians own 51 percent or more of the stock or equity of the business. Separate reports on additional minority-owned firms, including a new report on businesses owned by native Hawaiians and other Pacific islanders (previously included in the report on Asians), will be issued over the next two months.
Data for 2002 are not directly comparable to previous survey years because of several significant changes to the survey methodology. See “Comparability of 2002 and 1997 SBO Data” at <http://www.census.gov/econ/sbo/methodology.html#comparability>.
The data collected in a sample survey are subject to sampling variability as well as nonsampling errors. Sources of nonsampling errors include errors of response, nonreporting and coverage.