LOUISVILLE, Ky. — In a newly released report, Greater Louisville Inc. outlines strong performance in core economic development metrics from the fourth quarter of 2023. GLI’s project pipeline, made up of companies who are considering relocating or expanding in the region, grew by 93% in 2023, highlighting increased opportunities for economic growth in the coming years.
Last year, 12 projects in the Greater Louisville region received incentives, representing more than 1,600 new jobs. GLI ended the year with 58 projects in its economic development pipeline. These projects represent a conservative estimate of at least 5,700 potential news jobs that could land in the region in the coming years, however, that number is likely much higher as most projects do not disclose job numbers until the final phases. Nearly 40 percent of projects in the pipeline are in advanced manufacturing.
“2023 was an incredibly successful year of growth for our regional economy. Not only did we create new jobs, GLI’s team worked diligently to proactively grow our project pipeline and set our region up for continued growth in the years ahead,” said Sarah Davasher-Wisdom, president and CEO of Greater Louisville Inc. “I am excited to build on this momentum by implementing new strategies, like a national targeted marketing campaign in partnership with Louisville Metro, to continue to increase awareness of the competitive assets our region offers.”
The report also highlighted other vital signs for the regional and national economy. The region’s unemployment rate fell to 3.3 percent, lower than the national rate at 3.7%. Despite a modest decline between Q3 and Q4, employment levels across the Louisville region remained near a 10 year high.
“Despite the national economic pressures that businesses faced, our region performed extremely well in 2023. Many companies continue to add jobs and remain optimistic about their ability to grow in our region, due in large part to our competitive costs of doing business and infrastructure advantages,” said Clark Welch, Greater Louisville Inc.’s vice president of economic development.
Greater Louisville Inc. is the Metro Chamber of Commerce and represents 15 counties in Kentucky and Indiana. GLI is the 2019 National Chamber of the Year and is one of only 3% of chambers nationally certified with 5-star accreditation status by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
