Category

Strengths (S)

Weaknesses (W)

Opportunities (O)

Threats (T)

Ease of Doing Business

Strong Overall Ranking: Consistently ranked in the top 10 nationally for business (e.g., CNBC study), bolstered by a high quality of life, strong workforce, and good infrastructure.

High Cost & Tax Burden: Ranks poorly in tax competitiveness (e.g., 7th worst in the U.S. in the 2025 State Tax Competitiveness Index). High operational costs are straining businesses.

FDI Growth: Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is rising (e.g., 24 projects totaling $1.3 billion in a recent period), demonstrating global confidence despite high costs.

Outflow of Projects: Continues a multiyear trend of experiencing a net outflow of business expansion projects to other states due to a souring long-term business climate perception.

Domestic Manufacturing

High-Value Sector: Manufacturing is a major economic driver, accounting for 14% of wages and having a high value-added output due to a shift towards high-tech and productivity gains.

Recent Slowdown: Manufacturing GDP growth has significantly slowed (ranking 44th nationally recently) and the sector has seen a net decline in jobs and GDP output this decade.

Industry 4.0 Adoption: Opportunities to double down on investments in automation, process improvements, and technological changes (Industry 4.0) to boost efficiency and higher-value output.

Workforce Shortages & Costs: Persistent workforce gaps and high labor/compliance costs (e.g., new labor mandates) are top concerns, constraining growth and making the state less competitive regionally.

Sustainability Initiatives

Comprehensive Climate Action: Has a structured, multi-faceted 2025 Climate Action Framework focusing on clean transportation, resilient communities, and carbon sequestration.

Resource-Intensive Industries: The state's economic base includes mining, which faces environmental scrutiny and long-term uncertainty in a rapidly greening global economy.

Green Energy Economy: Significant grant funding and legislative support (e.g., Community Forestry Grants, Solar on Public Buildings) to drive a transition to a renewable/sustainable economy.

Climate Impacts on Natural Resources: Environmental challenges like microplastic pollution, toxic blooms, and water quality issues threaten key natural resources and require substantial, ongoing public funding for mitigation.

Balance of Trade

Diversified Exports: Strong performance in specific high-value exports like electrical equipment, pharmaceuticals, dairy, and to growing markets in Europe (e.g., UK, Ireland).

Volatile Export Base: Exports are susceptible to extreme fluctuations, especially in the oil and mineral fuel sector to Canada (a major recent quarterly decline of 1.3 billion).

Strategic Trade Missions: Proactive government trade missions (e.g., to Germany and Switzerland) aim to strengthen existing European markets and open new channels for innovative products.

Federal Trade Policy Risk: Highly exposed to the chaotic federal approach to trade, with tariff uncertainty negatively impacting exports to major markets like Mexico and China, hurting key agricultural producers like soybean farmers.