New York City

:This is an article about New York City; see also NYC, New York, New York (disambiguation) and New York.

Economy

Historically, the city developed because of New York Harbor, widely considered one of the finest natural ports in the world. The value of this port was greatly expanded upon in 1819 with the opening of the Erie Canal, which gave New York an enormous advantage over the competing ports of Boston and Philadelphia. The old port facility was at the South Street Seaport in Manhattan, but today there is still residual activity remaining at Red Hook in Brooklyn, and the Howland Hook Marine Terminal in Staten Island. Red Hook, for instance, handles the majority of the cacao bean imports to the United States. Since the 1950s, most shipping activity in the area has shifted to Port Newark-Elizabeth Marine Terminal in New Jersey. But despite changes in international shipping, trade and the tertiary sector have always remained the real basis of New York's economy.

Related Topics:
Port - Erie Canal - Boston - Philadelphia - South Street Seaport - Red Hook - Howland Hook Marine Terminal - 1950s - Port Newark-Elizabeth Marine Terminal - New Jersey - Trade - Tertiary sector

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Manufacturing first became a major economic base for New York City in the mid-nineteenth century with the advent of industrialization and the railroad. New York was formerly a national center for clothing manufacture, and some continues, sometimes in sweatshops. There are still around 120,000 manufacturing jobs in the city compared to over a million in the middle of the 20th century. Like international shipping, though, manufacturing gradually declined in the late-twentieth century with rising land values. The city was also a first center of the American film industry, along with Chicago, Illinois, until it moved to Hollywood, California, and still has some television and movie production.

Related Topics:
Clothing - Sweatshop - American film - Chicago, Illinois - Hollywood, California

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Today, New York City is the chief center of finance in the world economy, with Wall Street in Lower Manhattan's Financial District. Financial markets based in the city include the New York Stock Exchange, NASDAQ, American Stock Exchange, New York Mercantile Exchange, and New York Board of Trade. Many corporations also have their headquarters in New York.

Related Topics:
Finance - World economy - Wall Street - Lower Manhattan - Financial District - Financial markets - New York Stock Exchange - NASDAQ - American Stock Exchange - New York Mercantile Exchange - New York Board of Trade - Many corporations

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New York is also the center of many of the service sector industries in the U.S., with more Fortune 500 companies headquartered in the city than anywhere else in the country (including companies as prominent and diverse as Altria Group, Time Warner, American International Group, Pfizer, Bristol-Myers Squibb, JetBlue, DC Comics, Estée Lauder, Sony Music Entertainment, and many others). The city is by far the most important center for American mass media, journalism and publishing. Manhattan's Madison Avenue is synonymous with the American advertising industry, while Seventh Avenue is nicknamed "fashion avenue" as it serves as an important center for the fashion industry. Ninety percent of the diamonds imported to the United States pass through New York, and most of these are handled and cut in the city's Diamond District on 47th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. New York also has the most important scenes for art, music, and theater in the U.S., with an increasingly active artists' community. The city also has a large tourism industry.

Related Topics:
Service sector - Fortune 500 - Altria Group - Time Warner - American International Group - Pfizer - Bristol-Myers Squibb - JetBlue - DC Comics - Estée Lauder - Sony Music Entertainment - Mass media - Journalism - Publishing - Madison Avenue - Advertising - Seventh Avenue - Fashion - Art - Music - Theater - Tourism

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New York City's estimated gross metropolitan product of US$488.8 billion in 2003 was the largest of any city in the U.S. and the sixth largest if compared to any U.S. State. If it were a nation, the city would have the 16th highest gross domestic product in the world, exceeding that of Belgium ($387 billion), and the second highest per capita GDP in the world, at about $59,000/head, about $7,000/head lower than Luxembourg.

Related Topics:
2003 - Gross domestic product - Belgium - Per capita GDP - Luxembourg

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