Ohio Named #6 Best State Business Climate by Site Selection

• U.S.: The unemployment rate rose to3.7% in October. Real GDP rose at an annual rate of 2.6% in Q3 2022. The Federal Reserve rose short-term borrowing rates by 75 basis-points to the highest target range since January 2008.
• Ohio: Site Selection ranked Ohio #6 in their “2022 State Business Climate” rankings. New projects are expected to create more than 3,100 new jobs and spur nearly $4.7B in investment across the state.

Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 261,000 in October, and the unemployment rate rose to 3.7%. The labor force participation rate declined slightly to 62.2% during the month and remains 1.2% below its February 2020 level.  Job openings increased above forecasts to 10.7M in September, up from a revised 10.3M in August. Hires declined to 6.1M during the month and quits declined to 4.1M. Weekly jobless claims unexpectedly fell to 217,000 during the week ended October 29, a decrease of 1,000 from the previous week’s revised level. Continuing claims rose to 1.485M.

The Federal Reserve raised its short-term borrowing rate by 75 basis points to a target range of 3.75 - 4%, the highest level since January 2008, and stated it would take into account the lagging impact of higher rates on the economy in determining the pace of future rate hikes.  The PCE price index rose 0.3% in September to a 6.2% annual rate. Core PCE, the Federal Reserve’s preferred gauge of inflation, rose 0.5% during the month to a 5.1% annual rate.

Real GDP increased at an annual rate of 2.6% in the third quarter of 2022, according to "advance" estimates released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. Nonfarm business sector labor productivity increased 0.3% in the third quarter, with output increasing 2.8%.  Durable goods orders rose 0.4% in September and have now increased in six of the last seven months. ISM Manufacturing PMI registered 50.2 in October, down from 50.9 in September, the 29th consecutive month of growth in the manufacturing sector.

The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index decreased 4.9% in October to 102.5, down from 107.8 in September.  U.S. rent delinquency rates among small businesses rose 7% in October, the largest monthly increase this year. A recent survey from Alignable found that nearly 37% of small businesses were unable to pay their rent in full in October. Ohio was one of two states that saw delinquency rates decline.

Ohio was ranked the #6 best state business climate by Site Selection in their “2022 Top State Business Climate” rankings. 2022 marks the 20th consecutive year that Site Selection has ranked Ohio among the top 10 state business climates.  The Ohio Tax Credit Authority approved assistance for three economic development projects during their monthly meeting in October. The projects are set to create 3,104 new jobs and retain 8,216 jobs across the state. Collectively, the projects are expected to result in more than $152M in new payroll and spur more than $4.7B in investments across Ohio.  JobsOhio’s economic development strategy was spotlighted at the Bloomberg Growth Summit, which brought together business leaders across industries.  

$100M in federal funding is now available to support the implementation of electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure throughout the state over the next five years. DriveOhio will accept proposals from companies to install and operate EV charging stations in Ohio through December 21. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has awarded $5.9M in rebates to six schools in Ohio to replace existing school buses with low and zero-emission models as part of its Clean School Bus Program funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act.

825 blighted and vacant structures across 30 Ohio counties will be demolished to make way for new economic development investments as part of The Ohio Building Demolition and Site Revitalization Program; over half of the structures are located in Cuyahoga County.  The Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Port Authority was awarded a $27.2M grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Port Infrastructure Development Program to improve cargo handling efficiencies and modernize and expand its electric and stormwater infrastructure.  $230M in funding through the New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) program will be awarded to five community development entities throughout Ohio to help attract private investment in economic development projects. Recipients include Cleveland New Markets Investment Fund ($35M), Dayton Region New Market Fund ($45M), Northeast Ohio Development Fund ($45M), Ohio Community Development Fund ($60M), and Uptown Consortium ($45M).

Investor’s Business Daily named Worthington Industries (1), First Solar (6), Marathon Petroleum (15), Greif (49), Kroger (65), American Electric Power (67), and Lincoln Electric (91) among the best Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) companies in the U.S. out of 1,693 publicly traded companies.  UBIZ Venture Capital and the Urban League of Greater Cleveland have launched the Business Growth Institute with $500,000 in funding from JPMorgan Chase. The BGI aims to sustain legacy Black businesses and develop more Black-owned companies in high-growth sectors like renewable energy, software, and advanced manufacturing.

• Enable Injections will add 257 new jobs and $124M in capital investment in West Chester by 2027.
• Green Fox Plastics will invest $7.2M in a new facility in Millersburg, creating 12 new jobs.
• Trumbull Energy Center’s developer, Clean Energy Future, closed financing for $1.2B on the project.
• First Solar will open a $270M R&D center in Perrysburg in 2024, freeing up its production lines.
• McKesson has opened a new state-of-the-art 475,000 SF distribution center in Jeffersonville.
• M&M Industries has broken ground on a $7M, 78,000 SF production facility in Lordstown.
• Peoples Bancorp in Marietta will acquire KY-based Limestone Bancorp in a $208M all-stock merger.
• RōBEX, a robotics and industrial automation provider in Perrysburg, has acquired Michigan-based industrial robotics manufacturer Vantage.
• Nordson, a Westlake precision technology company, has acquired Minneapolis-based CyberOptics.
• First Transit, the Cincinnati-based provider of passenger transportation, will be acquired by Transdev.
• Genetesis, a biomagnetic imaging company in Mason, has raised $17.5M in Series C financing.
• Drive My Way, a Cleveland-based trucking recruitment SaaS, has raised $4.4M Series A financing.
• Youngstown State University and Foxconn will establish an EV workforce training and innovation center.
• Cleveland Clinic will launch Cleveland Clinic Connected, enabling hospitals and healthcare organizations around the world to connect with any of the system’s 6,000 experts through consultations.
• Reynolds and Reynolds and its foundation will donate $3M to launch an Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans at Wright State University and an additional $600,000 to create $5,000 scholarships for students.
• Avelo Airlines will come to Ohio with a nonstop flight to Orlando from the Dayton International Airport.
• Owens Corning has announced an enhanced shingle recycling goal, aiming for 2M tons per year by 2030.
• Redi.Health has announced a strategic partnership with ScriptDrop to help patients manage prescriptions.

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