The US state of Pennsylvania received $5.18bn-worth of investment in 2011 – the highest figure since both international and intra-state greenfield projects started to be tracked in 2006, according to fDiMarkets.

Among the leading sectors attracting investment were business services, financial services, and software and IT, which accounted for more than 30% of all new investments into the state.

Advertisement

The past year was particularly successful for Pittsburgh, which is Pennsylvania’s second largest city and second largest FDI recipient behind Philadelphia. Pittsburgh received a total of 286 new economic development deals in 2011, which is close to the pre-crisis levels of 2008, when 290 new projects were announced, and is higher than a year earlier, when 272 projects were recorded, according to Pittsburgh Regional Alliance Partnership (PRAP).

PRAP reported that these new ventures brought nearly $1.5bn in capital investment and are expected to create 11,440 new jobs. Among the sectors that noted the biggest increase in the past year were energy, financial and business services, advanced manufacturing, information and communications technology and life sciences. PRAP also estimated that 70% of the new deals came from the expansion of businesses already operating in the Pittsburgh region.

In terms of greenfield FDI (both foreign and intra-state), the number of projects in Pittsburgh has grown from four in 2006 to 19 in 2011. In the past year the city saw leading chip manufacturer Intel launch a new research centre, and global consultancy PriceWaterhouseCoopers announced it will be adding 125 jobs to its Pittsburgh office.

After battling heavy recession in the 1980s due to the decline in the steel industry, Pittsburgh has diversified its economy and is often quoted as a success story of redevelopment. US president Barack Obama praised the city’s efforts in job creation, especially in the field of healthcare and energy, during his visit in October 2011.

Find out more about