Indianapolis

Economy

Government, industry, and services are all components of the Indianapolis economy. Manufacturing was the dominant sector until the 1980s, when it was surpassed by services and retail trade. Indianapolis's manufacturing industries include food and food products, paper, chemicals, printing and publishing, petroleum, plastics, bricks, apparel, fabricated metal products, machinery, transportation equipment, medical and optical products, and electronics. At the end of 1996, manufacturing employed 126,100 people in Indianapolis. Top companies with corporate headquarters in the city include Eli Lilly and Company (pharmaceutical manufacturer), Allied Gas and Turbine, Allison Transmissions, and the Associated Group (an insurance firm that has been recommended as one of the top companies nationwide in which to invest).

Although Indianapolis is the largest major city in the United States not situated near a navigable body of water, it is still a major transport center because of its geographically central location. Five railroads, four interstate highways, and an international airport provide shipping services, and shipping costs are among the lowest in the nation.

The city's employment picture is bright, with the number of workers employed having increased without interruption since the mid-1980s. At the beginning of 1999 its labor force totaled 835,990, and unemployment stood at 2.7 percent. Major employment sectors at the end of 1996 were (in descending order) wholesale and retail trade, services, manufacturing, government, and finance, insurance, and real estate. The top employers (with number of people employed) were local government (62,700), state government (28,800), U.S. government (18,200), Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis (8,250), and Eli Lilly and Company (7,500).

The private and public sectors have cooperated to keep the city's economy strong by fostering new development. The Indianapolis Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) was formed in 1983. Revitalization of the city's downtown, guided by the Regional Center Plan, has benefited from public and private expenditures of over $4 billion since 1990. One of its major achievements was the construction of the new $319.5 million Circle Centre Mall, which opened in 1995.