October 20th, 2009 - Hispanics pumped $171 billion into Texas economy in 2008

Hispanic buying power in Texas is expected to jump 47 percent to $252 billion by 2013, according to a study by the Selig Center for Economic Growth at the University of Georgia.

The study found that Hispanic households contributed more than $171 billion to the Texas economy last year.

Texas was home to 8.9 million Hispanics in 2008, or 37 percent of the state’s population, according to figures from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Businesswise, the Top 20 Hispanic-owned companies pumped nearly $4 billion into the Texas economy last year, and employed 14,617 people, according to the 2008 Hispanic Business 500.

In 2002, the Census found that of Hispanic-owned businesses nationwide, Harris County had the third-highest number of firms — 61,934 — behind Los Angeles County and Miami-Dade County.

Updated figures are expected to be released next year by the Census, and Texas Comptroller Susan Combs projects the number to be even higher.

“We expect to see significant growth in Hispanic-owned businesses,” she said. “By encouraging growth and diversity, we provide opportunities for all businesses, large or small, to grow, prosper and propel our economy.”

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Originally published in the October 2, 2009 edition of the Houston Business Journal.

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