Factories in the United States build millions of computers, and the
United States occupies second place in the world in the production of electronic components (semiconductors, microprocessors, and computer equipment). Electronic equipment accounted for 10.5 percent of the yearly value added by manufacturing, and it was one of the fastest growing manufacturing sectors during the 1990s; production of electronics and electric equipment increased by 77 percent from 1987 to 1994. High- technology research and production facilities have developed in the
Silicon Valley of California, south of San Francisco; the area surrounding Boston; the Research Triangle of Raleigh, Chapel Hill, and
Durham in North Carolina; and the area around Austin, Texas. In addition, the United States has world leadership in the development and production of computer software. Leading software producers are located in areas around Seattle, Washington; Boston, Massachusetts; and San Francisco,
California.
Food processing accounted for about 10.2 percent of the overall annual
value added by manufacturing. Food processing is an important industry in
several states noted for the production of food crops and livestock, or
both. California has a large fruit- and vegetable-processing industry.
Meat-packing is important to agriculture in Illinois and dairy processing
is a large industry in Wisconsin.
Transportation equipment includes passenger cars, trucks, airplanes,
space vehicles, ships and boats, and railroad equipment. This category
accounted for 10.1 percent of the yearly value added by manufacturing.
Michigan, with its huge automobile industry, is a leading producer of
transportation equipment.
The manufacture of fabricated metal and primary metal is concentrated in
the nation’s industrial core region. Iron ore from the Lake Superior
district, plus that imported from Canada and other countries, and
Appalachian coal are the basis for a large iron and steel industry.
Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan are leading states in
the value of primary metal output. The fabricated metal industry, which
includes the manufacture of cans and other containers, hardware, and
metal forgings and stampings, is important in the same states. The
primary metals industry of these states provides the basic raw materials,
especially steel, that are used in making metal products.
Printing and publishing is a widespread industry, with newspapers
published throughout the country. New York, with its book-publishing
industry, is the leading state, but California, Illinois, and
Pennsylvania also have sizable printing and publishing industries.
The manufacture of paper products is important in several states,
particularly those with large timber resources, especially softwood trees
used to make most paper. The manufacture of paper and paperboard
contributes significantly to the economies of Wisconsin, Alabama,
Georgia, Washington, New York, Maine, and Pennsylvania.
Other major U.S. manufactures include textiles, clothing, precision instruments, lumber, furniture, tobacco products, leather goods, and stone, clay, and glass items.
B2 Energy Production
The energy to power the nation's economy—to provide fuels for its
vehicles and furnaces and electricity for its machinery and appliances—is
derived primarily from petroleum, natural gas, and coal. Measured in
terms of heat-producing capacity (British thermal units, or Btu),
petroleum provides 39 percent of the total energy consumed in the United
States. It supplies nearly all of the energy used to power the nation’s
transportation system and heats millions of houses and factories.
Natural gas is the source of 24 percent of the energy consumed. Many
industrial plants use natural gas for heat and power, and several million
households burn it for heating and cooking. Coal provides 22 percent of
the energy consumed. Its major uses are in the generation of electricity,
which uses more than three-fourths of all the coal consumed, and in the
manufacture of steel.
Waterpower generates 4 to 5 percent of the nation’s energy, and nuclear
power supplies about 10 percent. Both are employed mainly to produce
electricity for residential and industrial use. Nuclear energy has been
viewed as an important alternative to expensive petroleum and natural
gas, but its development has proceeded somewhat more slowly than
originally anticipated. People are reluctant to live near nuclear plants
for fear of a radiation-releasing accident. Another obstacle to the
expansion of nuclear power use is that it is very expensive to dispose of
radioactive material used to power the plants. These nuclear fuel
materials remain radioactive for thousands of years and pose health risks
if they are not properly contained.
Some 33 percent of the energy consumed in the United States is used in
the generation of electricity. In 1999 the nation’s generating plants had
a total installed capacity of 728,259 megawatts and produced 3.62
trillion kilowatt-hours of electricity. Coal is the most common fuel used
by electric power plants, and 57 percent of the nation’s yearly
electricity is generated in coal-fired plants. The states producing the
most coal-generated electricity are Ohio, Texas, Indiana, Pennsylvania,
Illinois, West Virginia, Kentucky, and Georgia.
Natural gas accounts for 9 percent of the electricity produced, and
refined petroleum for 2 percent. The states producing the most
electricity from natural gas are Texas and California. Refined petroleum
is especially important in Florida, New York, and Massachusetts. The
leading producers of hydroelectricity are Washington, Oregon, New York,
and California. Illinois, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and California
have the largest nuclear power industries.
Petroleum is a key resource for an American lifestyle based on extensive
use of private automobiles and trucks for commerce and businesses. Since
1947, when the United States became a net importer of oil, annual
domestic production has not been enough to meet the demands of the highly
mobile American society.
In 1970 domestic crude-oil production reached a record high of 3.5
billion barrels, but this had to be supplemented by imports amounting to
12 percent of the nation’s overall crude oil supply. Most Americans were
unaware of the dependence of the country on foreign petroleum until an
oil embargo imposed by some Middle Eastern nations in 1973 and 1974 led
to government price ceilings for gasoline and other energy products,
which in turn led to shortages. In 1973 the nation imported about one-
fourth of its total supply of crude oil. Imports continued to rise until
1977, when about half of the crude and refined oil supply was imported.
Imports then declined for a time, largely because energy-conservation
measures were introduced and because other domestic energy sources such
as coal were used increasingly. As of 1997, however, 47 percent of the
crude oil needs of the United States were met by net imports. Energy
Supply, World.
The United States consumes 25 percent of the world’s energy, far more
than any other country, despite having less than 5 percent of the world’s
population. The United States also produces a disproportionate share of
the world’s total output of goods and services, which is the main reason
the nation consumes so much energy. In addition, the U.S. population is
spread over a larger area than are the populations in many other
industrialized nations, such as Japan and the countries of Western
Europe. This lower population density in the United States results in a
greater consumption of energy for transportation, as truck, trains, and
planes are needed to move goods and people to the far-flung American
citizenry.
As a result of the nation’s high energy consumption, the United States accounts for nearly 20 percent of the global emissions of greenhouse gases. These gases—carbon dioxide, methane, and oxides of nitrogen—result from the burning of fossil fuels, and they can have a harmful effect on the environment. C Service and Commerce Sector
By far the largest sector of the economy in terms of output and
employment is the service and commerce sector. This sector grew rapidly
during the last part of the 20th century, creating many new jobs and more
than offsetting the slight loss of jobs in manufacturing industries. In
1998 commerce and service industries generated 72 percent of the GDP and
employed 75 percent of the U.S. workforce. Most of these jobs are
classified as white collar, and many require advanced education. They
include many high-paying jobs in financing, banking, education, and
health services, as well as lower-paying positions that require little
educational background, such as retail store clerks, janitors, and fast-
food restaurant workers.
C1 Service Industries The service sector is extremely diverse.
It includes an assortment of private businesses and government agencies
that provide a wide spectrum of services to the U.S. public. Services
industries can be very different from each other, ranging from health-
care providers to vacation resorts to automobile repair shops. Although
it would be almost impossible to list every kind of service industry
operating in the United States, many of these businesses fall into one of
several large service categories.
C1a Banking and Financial Services
In 1995 the U.S. financial market had a total of 628,500 institutions, which employed 7.0 million people. These institutions included investment, commercial, and savings banks; credit unions; mortgage banks; insurance companies; mutual funds; real estate agencies; and various holdings and trusts.
Banks play a central role in any economy since they act as intermediaries
in the flow of money. They collect deposits and distribute them as loans,
allowing depositors to save for future consumption and allowing borrowers
to invest. In 1998 the United States had 10,481 insured banks and savings
institutions with a total of 84,123 banking offices. Because of mergers
and closures, the number of banks steadily declined in the 1980s and
1990s while the number of bank offices increased. Combined assets of
insured banks and savings institutions totaled $5.44 trillion in 1998.
Banking in the 1990s was a highly competitive business, as banks offered
a variety of services to attract customers and sought to stem the flow of
investors to brokerage houses and insurance firms. Large banks in the
United States, in terms of assets, include Chase Manhattan Corporation,
Citibank, Morgan Guaranty Trust, and Bankers Trust, all headquartered in
New York City; Bank of America, headquartered in San Francisco; and
NationsBank, headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina.
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