The Commerce Department’s U.S. Census Bureau today released new data on Native Hawaiian- and Other Pacific Islander-owned businesses from the 2007 Survey of Business Owners. The number of Native Hawaiian- and Other Pacific Islander-owned businesses in the United States increased 31.1 percent between 2002 and 2007 to 37,957 businesses. These firms generated $6.5 billion in receipts in 2007, a 51.6 percent increase from 2002. This compares to a 17.9-percent increase in the total number of U.S. businesses between 2002 and 2007 and a rise in total business receipts of 32.9 percent.

The Survey of Business Owners: Native Hawaiian- and Other Pacific Islander-Owned Businesses: 2007 provides data on the number and percent of Native Hawaiian- and Other Pacific Islander-owned businesses, sales and receipts at the national, state and local levels, as well as other detailed information. The survey is conducted every five years as part of the economic census. The 2007 survey collected data from a sample of more than 2.3 million businesses.

“This important look at the economic activity of Native Hawaiian- and Other Pacific Islander-owned businesses is the only comprehensive and regularly collected data on this group,” said Tom Mesenbourg, deputy director of the U.S. Census Bureau. “These data confirm that businesses owned by Native Hawaiians and Other Pacific Islanders continue to grow both in number and in sales at rates that are faster than national rates for all businesses.”

States with the highest number of Native Hawaiian- and Other Pacific Islander-owned businesses were Hawaii, with 11,383 firms (30.0 percent of all Native Hawaiian- and Pacific Islander-owned businesses nationwide), and California, with 9,255 firms (24.4 percent of all Native Hawaiian- and Pacific Islander-owned businesses nationwide).

For more results from the 2007 Survey of Business Owners, visit http://www.census.gov/econ/sbo/.