The number of minority-owned businesses increased by 45.6 percent to 5.8 million between 2002 and 2007, more than twice the national rate of all U.S. businesses, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. In addition, the number of women-owned businesses increased 20.1 percent during the same period. The total number of U.S. businesses increased between 2002 and 2007 by 18.0 percent to 27.1 million.

    These new data come from the Preliminary Estimates of Business Ownership by Gender, Ethnicity, Race and Veteran Status: 2007, from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2007 Survey of Business Owners. The preliminary report released today is the first of 10 reports on the characteristics of minority-, women-, and veteran-owned businesses and their owners scheduled for release over the next year.

    Increases in the number of minority-owned businesses ranged from 60.5 percent for black-owned businesses to 17.9 percent for American Indian- and Alaska Native-owned businesses. Hispanic-owned businesses increased by 43.6 percent.

    Receipts of minority-owned businesses rose 55.6 percent to $1.0 trillion between 2002 and 2007. Increases ranged from a high of 62.9 percent for Native Hawaiian- and Other Pacific Islander-owned businesses to 28.3 percent for American Indian- and Alaska Native-owned businesses. Over the same period, receipts of Hispanic-owned and women-owned businesses increased by 55.5 percent and 27.0 percent respectively. Receipts of all U.S. businesses increased by 33.5 percent, to $30.2 trillion. 

Additional highlights:

Minority-Owned Businesses

    — Of the nation’s 5.8 million minority-owned businesses in 2007, an estimated 5.0 million had no paid employees. Receipts of these nonemployer businesses totaled $164.4 billion.

—     Among all minority-owned businesses, 768,147 had paid employees in 2007. These businesses employed 5.9 million people with a total payroll of $168.2 billion. Receipts for minority-owned businesses with employees totaled $864.2 billion.

— In 2007, 30.0 percent of minority-owned businesses were in repair and maintenance, personal and laundry services, and health care and social assistance.