CED News

Spearheaded by the growth of the Charlotte and Research Triangle metro areas, North Carolina now enjoys the nation's best business climate, according to Site Selection Magazine, a trade publication for corporate relocation specialists. The state was ranked third last year and climbed to the top of the magazine's rankings largely on the strength of business expansions and relocations during 2000, before the current economic slowdown hit. The magazine said North Carolina barely edged out California, Texas, Virginia and Florida for the top spot. The rankings are determined from five criteria that include total new and expanded corporate facilities for 2000; total new and expanded corporate facilities for 1998-2000; total new and expanded facilities per one million residents for 1998-2000; total new and expanded facilities per 1,000 square miles for 1998-2000; and results from the magazine's annual survey of corporate real estate executives who work for companies with nationwide operations. www.siteselection.com