As 2017 came to an end, North Carolina added one more accolade to its collection: the 2017 Best State for Business from Forbes.
Although North Carolina has made an appearance on the list for the last 12 years, always in the top 5, in 2017 it took the top spot because of a better employment outlook and the second lowest business costs (comprising labor, energy, and tax costs). North Carolina was also the only state to rank in the top 20 for all categories evaluated: business costs, labor supply, regulatory environment, economic climate, growth prospects, and quality of life.
“North Carolina has built one of the country’s strongest business climates over the past two decades, fueled by low business costs, incentives, and a young, educated workforce, many of whom have been trained at the strong universities in the state and Research Triangle Park,” Forbes’ report summarized. “Migration rates into the state are among the highest in the U.S. annually.”
