Business is Booming in the U.S.
It’s been four years already since COVID took over the United States and pretty much the world. The economy went through some tough times as businesses shut down and Americans were forced to social distance.
In 2024, things are looking up. Failing businesses were the norm for the past few years, but that trend is reversing. There has been a boom in new business startups, which is great for local economies.
New businesses create a domino effect. They create more jobs, which lead to productivity growth and stronger wage growth. New businesses also increase competition, which boosts wages and reduces prices.
Here’s a look at some business and entrepreneur data:
- Entrepreneurs filed 5.2 million “likely employer” business applications between January 2021 and December 2023. This is an increase of more than 30% compared with the number of applications filed between 2017 and 2019.
- Entrepreneurs filed 450,000 likely employer applications in the fourth quarter of 2023. This is an increase of almost 40% over the fourth quarter of 2019.
- The number of businesses under 1 year old surged in 2022 and 2023. This number surpassed pre-Great Recession levels for the first time.
- The number of business establishments grew in more than 80% of counties across the nation between 2019 and 2023.
Note that a likely employer is a business that is expected to have paid employees. Every state and Washington, D.C. saw an increase in likely employer applications. Wyoming saw the highest increase, at 93%, while Alaska saw the lowest, at a 15% increase.
Likely employer applications reached 450,000 in the last quarter of 2023, which means the surge is still continuing three years after COVID ravaged the country. Likely employer applications were not growing anywhere near this rate before the pandemic. The largest increase was 11% between the fourth quarter of 2015 and the fourth quarter of 2019.
This strong economic recovery was boosted by the Biden administration’s American Rescue Plan. It created an attractive environment to start a business. Pandemic relief such as the American Rescue Plan may have also played a role in the increase in entrepreneurship. The surge was seen especially in areas with large Black populations. The Black business ownership rate more than doubled between 2019 and 2022. The American Rescue Plan and the Inflation Reduction Act also contain provisions to help small and disadvantaged businesses and this could cause business creation to surge over the next decade.
Learn More About Business Startups
The United States is recovering from COVID, making it a great time to start a business. There are many options to consider.
Ready for entrepreneurship? Contact Orlando business startup lawyer B.F. Godfrey from Godfrey Legal. We have more than 30 years of experience counseling entrepreneurs and established business individuals in Florida. To schedule a consultation, fill out the online form or call (407) 890-0023.
Source:
americanprogress.org/article/entrepreneurship-startups-and-business-formation-are-booming-across-the-u-s/
