Economy

New York City is one of the world's most important centers of industry, trade, and finance. Businesses, in­dustries, and government agencies in the metropolitan area provide about 7 million jobs. About 3,5 million of these jobs are within the city itself.

The economies of both New York City and its suburbs are growing. But since the 1940's, the economy of the suburban area has grown much faster than that of the city. The construction of new roads, a growing labour force and the availability of land in the suburbs have led many businesses and industries to move from the crowded central city to the suburbs.

The types of jobs available in New York City have also been changing since the Wei's. The number of jobs for unskilled workers has decreased greatly because many idustries have moved to the suburbs. This decrease has created a serious economic problem because most immigrants to the city are unskilled. At the same time, the number of jobs for skilled workers, especially office workers, has increased. But many of these jobs are being filled by people who live in the suburbs and com­mute to the city.

Industry. New York City ranks third after Los Angeles Long Beach and Chicago among the leading manufacturing centres in the United States. It has about 17,000 industrial plants. They employ about 430,000 workers.

The most important industries are (1) printing and publishing and (2) clothing production. New York City is one of the nation's chief printing and publishing centres. It has more printing plants than any other U.S. city. New York does about a sixth of the nationa`s printing and publishing. It publishes about a third of the books published in the United States. The city's printing publishing industry employs about 93,000 people.

New York City's clothing industry is centred in Man­hattan's famous Garment District, southwest of Times Square. There, hundreds of factories employ about 119,000 people. But the garment industry has been de­clining in New York City. Many factories have closed. Other factories have left the Garment District because of the rising costs of doing business in the heart of Man­hattan.

Other leading manufacturing industries include those that produce chemicals, food products, furniture, ma­chinery, metal products, paper products, and textiles. The construction industry is also important. About 87,000 people in the city work in jobs related to the in­dustry.

Trade. New York City's port, officially called the Port of New York and New Jersey, is one of the world's larg­est and busiest seaports. It employs about 200,000 peo­ple. The total value of the cargo it handles exceeds that of any other port in the United States. The port's cargo includes foreign imports and exports, and goods going to and coming from other U.S. ports.

New York City's port activity has been declining since the late 1940s. One reason for the decline in port activity has been the growth of other international seaports in the United States, especially along the Great Lakes. The opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway in 1959 allowed ships that previously docked in New York to reach Great Lakes ports.

Large amounts of cargo are also handled at airports in the New York City area. Foreign air freight goes through Kennedy Airport and nearby Newark Interna­tional Airport in New Jersey. Domestic cargo is handled at Kennedy, La Guardia, and Newark airports.

Finance. More of the nation's largest and most im­portant financial institutions have their headquarters in New York City than in any other city. Banks, brokerage houses, insurance companies, property firms, stock ex­changes, and other financial organizations in New York employ about 495,000 people. Unlike most industries in the city, the financial organizations offer a steadily in­creasing number of jobs.

The most famous financial institution in New York City is the New York Stock Exchange, located at the corner of Broad and Wall streets in the heart of the Financial Dis­trict. It is the largest stock exchange in the world.

Transportation. New York City has a huge, compli­cated transportation system. Much of the transportation system in the city is cantered in the area of Manhattan that is south of Central Park. About million people travel to and from that area each working day.

An extensive road system has been developed to carry cars, buses, and trucks into, out of, and through New York City.

New York City includes 168 square kilometers of in­land water, so many bridges and tunnels are needed to link the city's boroughs. The famous Brooklyn Bridge crosses the East River and connects Brooklyn and the southern tip of Manhattan. It was completed in 1883 and declared a national historic landmark in 1964. Eight other bridges cross the East River.

Communications. New York City is the nation's most important centre for mass communications. More pub­lishing and broadcasting companies have their head­quarters located in New York than in any other city in the United States.

New York City has nearly 60 radio and television sta­tions and serves as the headquarters of the nation's four major broadcasting networks.