Midwest Manufacturing Exports: Who Buys? What Sells?
Exports have been responsible for a large share of the growth in gross domestic product (GDP) over the last decade. Between 1987 and 1995, exports as a share of total GDP rose from about 8% to more than 13%. Moreover, exports play an important role in sustaining not only manufacturing jobs, but also jobs that support manufacturing, such as services, transportation, and shipping. According to government reports, in 1992, 10.5 million U.S. jobs (approximately onetenth of all nonfarmjobs) were supported by exports-7 million by merchar: dise exports and 3.4 million by servIces exports.
