Industry Statistics - Best Places to Start
Statistical information on industries often originates from government sources. The U.S. government has the resources and expertise to produce high quality statistics. Sometimes private companies update government statistics or repackage it in more convenient forms. Industry associations and private companies may also produce statistics not available from government sources.
Be careful!
When using statistics you may need to read introductory material and footnotes, so that you understand what the statistics were designed to measure and any limitations of the statistics.
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Standard & Poors NetAdvantage This link opens in a new windowThe Surveys include current statistics and references to statistics sources for the large industries covered by S&P.
Use the Industries tab to browse industries, or search for a Company profile and find the Industry Survey links on the left side menu. -
Statista This link opens in a new windowSearch for statistics, demographics, opinions, data series and studies on many topics and industries. Useful for all subject areas.
Economic Census & other industry stats from US Census Bureau
The Census Bureau produces may useful statistical series for industries. These sites can take some work to figure out, but they are free. Statistical tables can often be manipulated or downloaded in useful forms.
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Business and Industry stats from the Economic CensusThis page links to statistics from many economic surveys and the Economic Census. You can enter a NAICS code in the Industry Search: --which may retrieve a set of links to various series.
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County Business PatternsCounty Business Patterns is an annual series that provides economic data by industry for the nation, states, and counties. This site provides links to various forms of the data, including data by 5-digit zip code or metropolitan area using either SIC or NAICS codes. Offers info on number of establishments and payroll size. Data can be downloaded to spreadsheets.
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Current Industrial ReportsThe primary objective of the CIR program was to produce data on production and shipments of selected products. These surveys measured manufacturing activity in commodities such as textiles and apparel, chemicals, primary metals, computer and electronic components, industrial equipment, aerospace equipment, and consumer goods. In 2012 the Census Bureau terminated this program.
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U.S. Census Bureau – Manufacturing, Mining, and Construction StatisticsThis site leads to several statistical publications with data for manufacturing and construction industries, including reports on residential construction and sales, an annual statistical survey of manufacturers, and monthly data for specific manufacturing industries on shipments, orders, and inventories.
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U.S. Census Bureau – Retail Trade DataThis site leads to reports with annual and monthly data on sales for retail, E-commerce, accommodations, and food service.
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U.S. Census Bureau – Service Annual SurveyThe Service Annual Survey gives “national estimates of annual revenue and expenses, by kind of business and tax status, for selected service industries” including information, transportation, health and social, financial, real estate, professional, environmental, arts, recreational and other services. A new series provides quarterly data on services.
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Economic Census: Concentration RatiosThis page links to reports by the Census Bureau that provide information on industry concentration "by the percent of output accounted for by the largest 4, 8, 20 and 50 companies." Data is based on the Economic Census. "Only the manufacturing report includes the Herfindahl-Hirschmann Index."
Other Industry Statistics
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American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI)ACSI tracks customer satisfaction over time by modeling customer evaluations of the quality of goods/services purchased in the US. "Companies can use the data from the Index to assess customer loyalty, identify potential barriers to entry within markets, predict return on investments, and pinpoint areas in which customer expectations are not being satisfied." Scores are available for industries and some leading companies within industries.
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International Trade Administration StatisticsYou may be able to get import/export data by industry at this site. The ITA site is more difficult to use than most gov sites, so it may take some time to find information. Data availability and currency varies greatly.
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Survey of Current BusinessMonthly publication by the Bureau of Economics Analysis (BEA) offers industry statistics such as GDP by industry or business investment by industry. Each issue offers different reports. The paper issues at the library have numerous supplemental statistical charts not included in the web version.
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Cluster Mapping Project Harvard Business School"The Cluster Mapping Project uses detailed county level data and statistical techniques to profile regional economies and their performance over time, with a special focus on clusters. Clusters are geographically concentrated groups of interconnected companies, universities, and related institutions that arise out of linkages or externalities across industries."
Part free, part subscription. EMU does not have a subscription.
Historical Industry Statistics: Paper Sources at the EMU Library
CRB Commodity Yearbook
This volume presents commodity statistics from numerous government and private sources. Useful for agricultural products, energy resources, metals, and some processed products such as plastics or lumber. Subscription was cancelled due to high cost/low use. Most recent volume is 2008.
On Reserve at the Circulation Desk HF 1041 .C56 2008
Agriculture, Mining, and Construction USA
Reference HD 9005 .A47x 1998
Manufacturing & Distribution USA
Reference HD 9721 .M3495 2000
Transportation and Public Utilities USA
Reference HE 202.5 .T72 1998
These reference works pull together historical data from many sources in a convenient arrangement by SIC code. Many of the tables provided can be updated using the Economics Census sources described above.
See Also
Finding stats is often difficult!
Locating the statistics you want can be difficult and time-consuming.
If you aren't finding what you need here, you may want to ask a librarian for some suggestions.
Using stats in your paper?
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APA Numbers and Statistics GuidePDF with quick advice from the APA.
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Writing with Statistics - Purdue OWLProvides some basics on descriptive and inferential statistics and tips on effective ways to integrate statistical information in your writing.
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Presenting data the Significance way byPublication Date: 2024A clear easy-to-read guide to presenting your message using statistical data. The author presents numerous examples alongside an explanation of how improvements can be made and basic principles to adopt.
