New Hampshire attracts foreign direct investment from 24 overseas countries in Europe, East Asia, Middle East and Australia. Foreign firms have an important presence in New Hampshire and make positive contributions to economic output and overall development. By presence, foreign firms are represented in many industries in the state. A relative higher concentration of foreign firms is in finance and insurance. A top 10 of the sectors where foreign subsidiaries operate shows hospitality in the last place. The geographical distributions of foreign firms identifies a clustering in the southern counties along New Hampshire-Massachusetts border within the economic metropolitan area centered on Boston, and agglomeration spillover towards the inner center of the state. The present report recognizes that foreign subsidiaries play a vital role in employment and adds detail to the picture of how foreign direct investment supports jobs in the state. The majority of foreign firms are very small. Foreign direct investment in New Hampshire supports jobs in every county and across various industries. Jobs are supported by foreign firms in service, distribution and manufacturing, and in non-high-tech and high-tech industries.
Almost a quarter of New Hampshire foreign firms are in manufacturing. In the US, the manufacturing sector is a significant driver of economic growth, with a higher gross output than any other private sector industry. The manufacturing sector in the United States has consistently been the largest recipient of FDI[i]. There is likely additional potential of this sector to generate growth and to support jobs in New Hampshire.
Foreign firms contribute to New Hampshire’s high-tech sector. Advanced industries are important drivers of growth for the US economy[ii]. Business activity in these industries involves new technologies, employs and trains skilled workers, and contributes to the development of communities. Companies in high-tech industries bring innovations to the state’s economy. The state competitiveness benefits from advanced industries. A relative low proportion of foreign firms operate in high-tech industries in New Hampshire. There is further potential to attract foreign investment in the state’s advanced industries.
Headline figures
46 industries[iii] have foreign firms’ presence.
1/2 of the industries[iv] in which foreign subsidiaries operate have fewer than 3 foreign firms.
44% of all foreign subsidiaries are service providers, of which 45% have Canadian parent companies.
29% of foreign firms are in finance and insurance.
58% of foreign firms in finance and insurance are subsidiaries of Canadian financial institutions.
#10 is the ranking of the hospitality sector[v] in terms of foreign firms’ representation.
22% of foreign firms are in manufacturing.
28% of foreign manufacturing firms have Germany as country of origin.
1/4 of foreign manufacturers are in the computer, electronic, electrical and communications equipment and instruments sector.
13 countries across Pacific-Asia, Europe and North America operate subsidiaries in the sector of computer, electronic, electrical, and communication equipment and instruments.
40% of foreign firms are in Hillsborough County.
21 countries in Europe, East Asia, Middle East and Australia have subsidiaries in Hillsborough County.
13 countries have subsidiaries in Rockingham County, led by Canada and Germany.
70% of foreign firms are in the three southernmost counties.
2% of foreign firms are in the northernmost county.
5 countries of origin for FDI in Coos County are Canada, United Kingdom, France, Ireland and Japan.
12 distinct advanced industries have foreign firms’ presence.
Under 20% of foreign firms are high-tech.
40% is combined share of Germany and United Kingdom in high-tech foreign subsidiaries.
6% of foreign subsidiaries have more than 250 employees.
19 employees or fewer reflects the size of most foreign subsidiaries.
24 countries have parent companies who have subsidiaries in New Hampshire
674.9 is the FDI Origin Index for Germany which leads all countries of origin for likelihood to have FDI in New Hampshire.
32,149 is the FDI Employment Impact Index for Germany which leads all countries of origin for the estimated potential to support jobs in New Hampshire.
$9.15 billion is the estimated Gross State Product (GSP) of New Hampshire that could be potentially realized by FDI from Germany, which leads all countries of origin, based on the FDI GSP Impact Index.
Endnotes
[i] SelectUSA, FDI in Manufacturing, Advancing U.S. Competitiveness in a Global Economy, 2017.
[ii] SelectUSA, High-Tech Industries, The Role of FDI in Driving Innovation and Growth, 2017.
[iii] Number of industries as represented at the 3-digit level of The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes.
[iv] Industries as represented at the 3-digit level of The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes.
[v] Sectors are created by the authors.
