Impact of Foreign Direct Investment on Manufacturing in the United States

Investment continues to grow in the United States. According to the 2019 Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Confidence Index, the U.S. has remained on top for the past seven years, stating:

“The country’s continued attractiveness is in large part the result of its sustained and robust economic expansion in recent years.”

A number of factors contribute to manufacturing’s rapid growth in the U.S. including:

• Tax Reform: The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act passed in 2018, which reduced the corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 21 percent, has created investment opportunities for businesses, and the manufacturing industry has already experienced positive results.
• Regulation: Regulatory reform has alleviated much of the burden that manufacturers face enabling them to focus on growing their businesses, and in turn, the economy.
• Workforce: The high labor standards of the U.S. is attractive and encourages a quality and safe working environment. Additionally, the American workforce is the most productive in the world. Most manufacturers today push training programs and partner with colleges and universities to create a more competitive workforce. States and communities are also integrating job training programs as part of their incentive packages to further attract manufacturers to invest.
• Trust: The trusted business climate the U.S. provides allows businesses to interact and conduct transactions in a secure and stable environment.
• Innovation: The U.S. is a leader in innovation and registers more international patents than any other country, according to SelectUSA.
• Proximity of Consumers: The American consumer continues to be a draw for manufacturers. Consumer spending is a significant driver of a strong economy. As SelectUSA points out, the U.S. offers the most attractive consumer market on earth with a GDP of $20 trillion and 325 million people.

All these areas and more are why, to date, the U.S. remains the largest single recipient of FDI in the world. The country has an ease for doing business, and if trends continue, the U.S. will flourish into the future.

During SelectUSA’s 2019 Investment Summit in Washington, D.C., June 10-12, Gray Construction will be ready to discuss how our fully integrated design-build solutions can benefit foreign investors looking to build modern manufacturing facilities in the U. S. Stop by booth # 141 to learn how more than seventy percent of Gray’s manufacturing projects are currently with international customers. For more information, contact Jeff Bischoff, executive vice president of business development, at jbischoff@gray.com or Marcus Taylor, director of business development at mtaylor@gray.com.