Economy of New York

New York City

New York City dominates the economy of the state. It is the leading center of banking, finance and communication in the United States and is the location of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on Wall Street, Manhattan. [http://www.bea.gov/ The Bureau of Economic Analysis] estimates that in 2005, the total gross state product was $963.5 billion [http://www.bea.gov/bea/newsrel/gspnewsrelease.htm] , ranking 3rd behind California and Texas. If New York were a nation, it would rank as the 16th largest economy in the world, behind South Korea. The state economy grew 3.3%, slightly slower than the 3.5% growth rate for the US. It was the 25th fastest growing economy in the US in 2005. Its 2005 per capita personal income was $50,038, an increase of 5.9% from 2004, placing it 5^th in the nation behind Massachusetts, and 8th in the world behind Ireland. New York's agricultural outputs are dairy products, cattle and other livestock, vegetables, nursery stock, and apples. Its industrial outputs are printing and publishing, scientific instruments, electric equipment, machinery, chemical products, and tourism.

Many of the world's largest corporations locate their home offices in Manhattan or in nearby Westchester County, New York. The state also has a large manufacturing sector which includes printing and the production of garments, furs, railroad rolling stock, and bus line vehicles. Some industries are concentrated in upstate locations also, such as ceramics (the southern tier of counties), microchips and nanotechnology (Albany), and photographic equipment (Rochester).

Long Island

The counties of Nassau and Suffolk have long been renowned for their affluence. Long Island has a very high standard of living with residents paying some of the highest property taxes in the country. In opulent pockets of the North Shore of Long Island and South Shore, assets have passed from one generation to the next over time.

From about 1930 to about 1990, Long Island was considered one of the aviation centers of the United States, with companies such as Grumman Aircraft having their headquarters and factories in the Bethpage area. Grumman has long been the source of top warplanes for the U.S. Navy and the Marine Corps, as seen in the movie "Top Gun" and numerous WW-II naval and Marine Corps aviation movies. Prominent WW-II Grumman aircraft included the F4F "Wildcat" and F6F "Hellcat" fighters, and the TBF "Avenger" bomber, flown by hundreds of U.S. and Allied pilots, including former President George H.W. Bush.

Long Island has played a prominent role in scientific research and in engineering. It was the home of the Brookhaven National Laboratories in nuclear physics and Department of Energy research. In recent decades companies such as Sperry Rand and Computer Associates, headquartered in Islandia, have made Long Island a center for the computer industry. Gentiva Health Services, a national provider of home health and pharmacy services, also is headquartered in Long Island.

Tourism is a good part of the Long Island economy in certain regions. Tourism thrives primarily in the summer because of the natural beauty, parks and beaches. Regions of Long Island that are large tourist attractions are the North fork on the east end of Suffolk County, which is known for fishing villages, quaint towns, ferries across to Connecticut or other northern states, and for wineries. The South fork is primarily known for similar features including golf, equestrian, boating, surfing, and fine dining in the Hamptons and Montauk.

The eastern end of the island is still partly agricultural, now including many vineyards and pumpkin farms as well as traditional truck farming. Fishing also continues to be an important industry, especially at Northport and Montauk.

Long Island is home to the East Coast's largest industrial park, the Hauppauge Industrial Park. The park has over 1,300 companies, and employs over 55,000 Long Islanders. Companies in the park and abroad are represented by the Hauppauge Industrial Association.

Fishing Industry

There is a moderately large saltwater commercial fishery located along the Atlantic side of Long Island. The principal catches by value are clams, lobsters, squid, and flounder. There used to be a large oyster fishery in New York waters as well, but at present, oysters comprise only a small portion of the total value of seafood harvested. Perhaps the best known aspect of the fishing sector is the famous Fulton Fish Market in New York City, which distributes not only the New York catch but imported seafood from all over the world. The Fulton Fish Market has been moved from Fulton Street in Manhattan to The Bronx

Mining

New York's mining sector is concentrated in three areas. The first is near New York City. Primarily, this area specializes in construction materials for the many projects in the city, but it also contains the emery mines of Westchester County, one of two locations in the U.S. where that mineral is extracted. The second area is the Adirondack Mountains. This is an area of very specialized products, including talc, industrial garnets, and zinc. It should be noted that the Adirondacks are not part of the Appalachian system, despite their location, but are structurally part of the mineral-rich Canadian Shield. In the inland southwestern part of the state, in the Allegheny Plateau, is a region of drilled wells. The only major liquid output at present is salt in the form of brine; however, there are also small to moderate petroleum reserves in this area. New York produced convert|211292000|oilbbl|m3 of crude oil and convert|55.2|Gcuft|m3 of natural gas in 2005 worth $440M. 1.58 billion gallons of Salt Brine were produced in 2005 at a value of about $100M. Geothermal energy potential is also being explored in the state, with 24 drilling applications being submitted to the Division of Mineral Resources in 2005.

Exports

New York exports a wide variety of goods such as foodstuffs, commodities, minerals, manufactured goods, cut diamonds, and automobile parts. New York's top 5 export markets in 2004 were Canada ($30.2 billion), United Kingdom ($3.3 billion), Japan ($2.6 billion), Israel ($2.4 billion), and Switzerland ($1.8 billion). New York's largest imports are oil, gold, aluminum, natural gas, electricity, rough diamonds, and lumber.

Canada has become a very important economic partner of New York. 23% of the state's total worldwide exports went to Canada in 2004. Tourism from the north is also a large part of the economy. Canadians spent US$487M in 2004 while visiting the state. This figure is predicted to increase due to the stronger Canadian dollar.

Agriculture

The Erie Canal, completed in 1825, dramatically changed New York by opening eastern markets to Midwest farm products. The canal also contributed to New York City's financial development, helped create numerous large cities, and encouraged immigration to the state. Except in the mountain regions, the areas between cities are rich agriculturally. The Finger Lakes region has orchards producing apples, one of New York's leading crops. Vineyards in the region and on Long Island make the state famous for its wines. The state produces other, diverse crops, especially grapes, strawberries, cherries, pears, onions, and potatoes. New York is also a major supplier of maple syrup and is the third leading producer of dairy goods in the United States.

According to the NYS Department of Agriculture & Markets [ [http://www.agmkt.state.ny.us/agfacts.html State Dpt of Agriculture] ] New York State's agricultural production returned over $3.6 billion to the farm economy in 2005. About 25 percent of the state’s land area, or 7.55 million acres (31,000 km²), are used by the 35,600 farms to produce a very diverse array of food products. Here are some of the items in which New York ranks high nationally:

LIVESTOCK PRODUCTSDairy and animal production in New York provided $2.30 billion to farmers in 2005. That accounts for 63 percent of all cash receipts.

DAIRY PRODUCTSMilk is New York’s leading agricultural product and is produced all across the state. Milk sales account for one-half of total agricultural receipts. Production in 2005 was 11.7 billion pounds with a preliminary value of $1.91 billion. New York is the Nations 3rd leading producer and Wyoming is the State’s leading county.

MEAT PRODUCTIONNew York livestock producers marketed 246 million pounds of meat animals during 2005 bringing in $190 million in cash receipts. Sales from cattle and calves accounted for $173 million, hogs and pigs returned $13.0 million, and sheep and lambs provided $3.67 million.

POULTRY PRODUCTIONThe value of New York eggs, ducks, broilers and turkeys plus the value of sales for other chickens totaled $91.3 million for 2005. Eggs made up $36.5 million of the total followed by broilers at $7.61 million. New York ranks 22nd among all egg producing states.

CROP PRODUCTIONField crops, fruits and vegetables returned $1.33 billion to New York farmers in 2005.

FRUITSNew York’s fruit crop receipts were valued at $244 million in 2005. Apples and grapes lead New York fruit crops in value.

APPLESNew York ranks 2nd nationally with receipts worth about $185 million in 2005. Three general areas produce most of the apples: along the southern Lake Ontario shore, along the Hudson Valley, and along the upper Lake Champlain Valley. New York’s leading varieties are McIntosh, Empire, Rome, Idared, and Red Delicious.

GRAPESWine and juice grape production place New York 3rd behind California and Washington. The crop was worth $34.3 million in 2005. Three-fourths of the production was for juice and one-fourth went into wines. The four major producing areas are Lake Erie area, the Finger Lakes, the Hudson Valley and the eastern end of Long Island.

TART CHERRIESProduction in New York ranks 4th in the Nation. Production in 2005 totaled 7.5 million pounds with a value of $3.24 million.

PEARSProduction ranked 4th in the nation with 8,500 tons and had a value of $4.09 million.

STRAWBERRIESStrawberries are the 3rd most valuable fruit in New York and places New York 7th in national production. Growers harvested 5.20 million pounds in 2005. The crop returned $8.06 million to growers.

VEGETABLESThe value of vegetables in 2005 totaled $461 million. Fresh Market vegetables rank 6th and Processing vegetables are 7th among all states. Leading crops in New York are cabbage, sweet corn and onions.

CABBAGEThe nation’s 2nd largest producer, cabbage is principally grown south of Lake Ontario at Monroe, Genesee, Orleans, Ontario and Niagara counties. New York cabbage is typically stored for sale as fresh during winter months. Value of the fresh market crop in 2005 totaled $67.3 million.

SWEET CORNProduced statewide, sweet corn had a value of $69.9 million. Concentrations are found in the Lower Hudson Valley and around the Genesee Valley. The 2005 fresh market crop worth $60.5 million, placed 4th nationally and the processing crop valued at $9.34 million ranked 5th.

ONIONSAn important crop with receipts of $49.0 million in 2005. Onions are grown in New York’s muck soils in Orange, Orleans, Oswego, Madison and Wayne counties. The state ranked 6th in production for 2005 with 301 million pounds.

SNAP BEANSGrown in the Central and Western regions for fresh and processing. The 2005 crop was valued at $35.8 million. Fresh production accounted for 59 percent of the total and puts New York 5th across the nation. Processing sales of $12.8 million rank New York 2nd..

OTHER VEGETABLESTomatoes: $21.5 million, 13th nationallyPumpkins: $21.9 million, 6th nationallyCucumbers: $15.3 million, 5th nationallySquash: $29.1 million, 5th nationallyGreen Peas for Processing: $11.4 million, 4th nationallyCauliflower: $3.35 million, 3rd nationally

FIELD CROPSNew York produces a variety of field crops largely in support of it’s dairy industry. Corn, oats and wheat are most widely grown with soybeans steadily increasing in importance. New York ranks 3rd in corn silage, valued at $227 million. Production of grain corn ranked 19th with a value of $117 million. Soybean production was valued at $43.5 million. The state placed 10th in oat production, 32nd in wheat and 24th for soybeans. Hay production put New York 22nd and was valued at $282 million in 2005. Most hay is used on farms and its value is realized through sale of milk and livestock. Fall potatoes reached a value of $40.3 million in 2005 and made New York the 11th leading producer.

MAPLE SYRUPAt $7.04 million, New York ranks 2nd behind Vermont in value but was 3rd with 245,000 gallons produced behind Vermont and Maine in 2005.

FLORICULTURE CROPSIn 2005, New York floriculture products were valued at $200 million. Bedding and garden plants top the list of commodities. New York’s floriculture output ranks 5th nationally. A variety of crops are produced in convert|24500000|sqft|m2 of covered area and on convert|963|acre|km2|1 of open ground. Christmas Trees provide about $21.3 million of sales and made New York the 11th leading producer in 2001.

New York State is an agricultural leader, ranking within the top five states for agricultural products including dairy, apples, cherries, cabbages, potatoes, onions, maple syrup and many others. The state is the largest producer of cabbage in the U.S. The state has about a quarter of its land in farms and produced US$3.4 billion in agricultural products in 2001. The south shore of Lake Ontario provides the right mix of soils and microclimate for many apple, cherry, plum, pear and peach orchards. Apples are also grown in the Hudson Valley and near Lake Champlain. The south shore of Lake Erie and the southern Finger Lakes hillsides have many vineyards. New York is the nation's third-largest grape-producing state, behind California, and second largest wine producer by volume. In 2004, New York's wine and grape industry brought US$6 billion into the state economy. The state has 30,000 acres (120 km²) of vineyards, 212 wineries, and produced 200 million bottles of wine in 2004.

New York was heavily glaciated in the ice age leaving much of the state with deep, fertile, though somewhat rocky soils. Row crops, including hay, corn, wheat, oats, barley, and soybeans, are grown. Particularly in the western part of the state, sweet corn, peas, carrots, squash, cucumbers and other vegetables are grown. The Hudson and Mohawk Valleys are known for pumpkins and blueberries. The glaciers also left numerous swampy areas, which have been drained for the rich humus soils called muckland which is mostly used for onions, potatoes, celery and other vegetables. Dairy farms are present throughout much of the state. Cheese is a major product, often produced by Amish or Mennonite farm cheeseries. New York is rich in nectar-producing plants and is a major honey-producing state. The honeybees are also used for pollination of fruits and vegetables. Most commercial beekeepers are migratory, taking their hives to southern states for the winter. Most cities have Farmers' markets which are well supplied by local farmers.

References

ee also

* Comparison between U.S. states and countries by GDP (PPP)