Special to Iredell Free News
RALEIGH — CNBC has named North Carolina as America’s Top State for Business for the second year in a row. Gov. Roy Cooper joined CNBC’s Scott Cohn at the Biltmore Estate in Asheville for a live broadcast where the winner was revealed.
“When we invest in our people, we invest in the foundation of our success,” Cooper said. “Thanks to our well-trained, dedicated and diverse workforce, North Carolina has been named the top state for business for the second year in a row, and it’s important for us to invest in the education and well being of our people to continue our amazing success.”
The CNBC study looks at 86 metrics in ten categories of competitiveness. North Carolina ranked No. 1 in workforce and highly in the economy, technology and innovation, and access to capital categories. This is only the second time in the ranking’s history that a state has received the top spot two years in a row.
Since 2017 North Carolina has placed in the top five of state rankings four times.
“After another record-breaking year for economic development wins, I am more than proud to see the great state of North Carolina recognized as the best state in the nation for business yet again,” said N.C. Commerce Secretary Machelle Baker Sanders. “Last year’s performance includes nearly 29,000 new jobs and $19.3 billion in investments – the result of collaborative leadership and hard work. My team and I are proud to have launched the state’s ‘First In Talent’ strategic economic development plan, intentionally incorporating diversity, equity, and inclusion practices that have facilitated booming economic opportunities for all North Carolinians.”
Earlier this year, North Carolina also won Site Selection Magazine’s Prosperity Cup for the third year in a row, which recognizes the competitiveness of state-level economic development agencies and their success in landing capital investment projects. This year, North Carolina also won Area Development magazine’s 2023 Platinum Shovel Award which recognizes states that went above and beyond the gold standard for investment and job creation and received Business Facilities magazine’s State of the Year award after a historic year of economic development and job growth.
Since 2017, North Carolina has announced over 103,000 jobs, including major jobs announcements from companies like Apple, Wolfspeed, Toyota, VinFast, and Boom Supersonic. North Carolina continues to recruit good-paying jobs to add to the advanced manufacturing, clean energy and technology industries already thriving in the rural and urban parts of the state.