U.S. Census Of Incorporations
Two U.S. Census regions reported overall declines in new business articles of incorporations -- New England and the West North Central regions each fell 3 percent. Twenty-four states reported declines in domestic for-profit incorporations in 2006. The most notable decline was in Iowa, down 23 percent from 5,925 in 2005 to 4,589 in 2006. New Mexico posted a 15-percent drop in new business incorporations, from 3,584 in 2005 to 3,042 in 2006. New Jersey declined 7 percent, to 35,417 from 37,861. North Dakota's postings fell 9 percent and West Virginia declined 6 percent.
Areas that rely heavily on industries such as agriculture, mining and durable goods manufacturing are not seeing much growth in business incorporations. This doesn't mean necessarily that the economies are not healthy. It is simply an indication that growth in entrepreneurial activity is more focused in the service and financial sectors, and to a lesser degree in wholesale and retail trade.
The main exception to this seems to be in the northeast. New England's economy, traditionally a healthy mix between the agricultural, industrial and white-collar sectors, still seems to be struggling with the burgeoning service-oriented economy. And while growth in the mid-Atlantic was relatively flat in 2006, the numbers of new incorporations in New York and New Jersey are still high, and Pennsylvania showed an impressive 5-percent growth level.
Based on information in Dun & Bradstreet's database, in 2007 the following numbers of companies will celebrate anniversaries: * 100 years old (started in 1887) - 1,156
* 75 years old (started in 1922) - 2,412
* 50 years old (started in 1947) - 15,400
* 25 years old (started in 1972) -- 90.485
In addition, more than 99% of all U.S. businesses are less than 25 years old. Dun & Bradstreet's business database tracks a variety of facts and figures on over 45 million companies world-wide and 20 million in the United States. Company information is built from multiple sources -- from public records data and general business directories, to partnerships with industry-specific data gatherers and even a program that encourages D&B employees to report new business openings in their neighborhoods. In 2006, Dun & Bradstreet added some 2.5 million new files and deleted 1.7 million old ones.
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