Press Releases

North Carolina’s designated Main Street and Small Town Main Street communities have leveraged more than $5.2 billion in public and private investment in their downtown districts since 1980, according to new figures released today by the Department of Commerce.During the recently completed 2022-23 fiscal year, North Carolina’s Main Street programs leveraged $684,637,060 in local public and private investment and saw 365 new businesses and nearly 3,000 jobs added in their downtown districts.

Chick-fil-A Supply, a wholly owned subsidiary of Chick-fil-A, Inc., and distribution service provider of the chain’s restaurants, will create more than 85 jobs in Rowan County, Governor Roy Cooper announced today. Chick-fil-A Supply will invest $58.3 million to open a new distribution center in the City of Kannapolis.“Chick-fil-A’s expansion is good for Kannapolis along with Rowan and surrounding counties,” said Governor Cooper. “We appreciate their vote of confidence in North Carolina and the strength of our workforce and infrastructure.”

The state’s seasonally adjusted August 2023 unemployment rate was 3.3 percent, unchanged from July’s revised rate. The national rate increased 0.3 of a percentage point to 3.8 percent.North Carolina’s unemployment rate decreased 0.6 of a percentage point from a year ago. The number of people employed increased 12,790 over the month to 5,072,983 and increased 103,639 over the year. The number of people unemployed increased 2,183 over the month to 173,576 and decreased 26,778 over the year.

The North Carolina Board of Science, Technology & Innovation announced today that 65 innovative small businesses in North Carolina have received 73 grants to develop and commercialize groundbreaking new technologies with the potential for commercialization. In North Carolina fiscal year 2023, which ended June 30, the One North Carolina Small Business Program awarded nearly $2.05 million to pioneering small businesses in 19 counties across the state.

Unemployment rates (not seasonally adjusted) decreased in 39 of North Carolina’s counties in July 2023, increased in 27, and remained unchanged in 34. Scotland County had the highest unemployment rate at 6.7 percent while Buncombe and Swain Counties each had the lowest at 2.7 percent. Two of the state’s metro areas experienced rate decreases, two increased, and 11 remained unchanged. Among the metro areas, Rocky Mount had the highest rate at 5.2 percent while Asheville had the lowest at 2.9 percent. The not seasonally adjusted statewide rate was 3.6 percent.

Today, North Carolina Commerce Secretary Machelle Baker Sanders released the following video message in honor of Women’s Equality Day, which is Saturday, August 26:

Clayton Supply, part of Clayton Home Building Group, will create 263 jobs as it locates a new facility in Stanly County, Governor Roy Cooper announced today. The company’s project will locate in New London.

The state’s seasonally adjusted July 2023 unemployment rate was 3.3 percent, unchanged from June’s revised rate. The national rate decreased 0.1 of a percentage point to 3.5 percent.North Carolina’s unemployment rate decreased 0.4 of a percentage point from a year ago. The number of people employed increased 12,229 over the month to 5,060,181 and increased 81,640 over the year. The number of people unemployed decreased 1,159 over the month to 171,445 and decreased 22,097 over the year.

North Carolina set a record for visitor spending in 2022, according to county-level data released today by the North Carolina Department of Commerce. North Carolina’s urban counties registered the largest gains in 2022 visitor spending, following a few years of rural counties leading visitor spending post-pandemic.The preliminary findings from an annual study commissioned by Visit North Carolina, a unit of the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina, reflect the economic impact of tourism on local economies across the state.

The North Carolina Rural Infrastructure Authority (RIA) has approved five grant requests to local governments totaling $1,384,730, Governor Roy Cooper announced today. The requests include commitments to create a total of 133 jobs. The public investment in these projects will attract more than $68.3 million in private investment.