Facts & Figures

As energy demand increases worldwide, West Virginia’s abundant natural resources are being exported across the globe. West Virginia earned nearly $3 billion in coal exports in 2010, and another $1.6 billion for its plastics and machinery manufacturing industries. West Virginia exports are growing well above the national average, creating greater profits and new job opportunities each year.

Job Creation

Trade supported 192,600 jobs in West Virginia in 2008, or 20.7% of total jobs, up from 11.2% in 1992.¹
About one-sixth (17%) of all manufacturing workers in West Virginia depended on exports for their jobs.²
In 2008, 22,000 people in West Virginia were employed by U.S. affiliates of companies that are at least 50% foreign-owned.³

Exports and Growth

West Virginia exported $4.8 billion in merchandise to 125 foreign markets in 2009 (a 53% increase over 2005). West Virginia’s largest market in 2009 was Canada ($1.0 billion), followed by Brazil ($407
million), the Netherlands ($364 million), Belgium ($313 million), and China ($296 million).⁴
In 2008, 771 companies exported goods from West Virginia. Of these, 74% were small- and medium-sized enterprises with fewer than 500 employees.
Agricultural exports are important to West Virginia’s economy, totaling $67 million in 2008.⁵
Since 2007, the U.S. Export-Import Bank has financed over $133 million in exports from 10 companies in 7 communities in West Virginia.⁶

Education and Research

In 2008–2009, 1,311 West Virginia students studied abroad, a 28.3% increase over the previous academic year.⁷
During 2009–2010, 2,281 international students were enrolled in West Virginia colleges and universities and contributed over $52.3 million to the West Virginia economy.⁸

Global Engagement

Since 1961, 598 Peace Corps volunteers from West Virginia have served in dozens of countries overseas.⁹
Support from U.S. government grants and contracts to private voluntary organizations engaged in foreign assistance and development in West Virginia totaled $1,439,461 in 2008.¹⁰

http://businessroundtable.org/uploads/studies-reports/downloads/Trade_and_American_Jobs.pdf
http://www.trade.gov/mas/ian/statereports/
http://www.bea.gov/scb/pdf/2010/11%20November/1110_us_ops.pdf
http://www.trade.gov/mas/ian/statereports/
http://www.fas.usda.gov/info/factsheets/WTO/states.html
https://webappsprod01.exim.gov/apps/usmap/usmap.nsf
http://www.iie.org/en/Research-and-Publications/Open-Doors/Data/Fact-Sheets-by-US-State
http://www.nafsa.org/publicpolicy/default.aspx?id=23158
http://multimedia.peacecorps.gov/multimedia/pdf/stats/homestates.pdf
http://www.pvo.net/usaid/