Growth in metro Milwaukee exports once again outpaced most other Midwestern metro areas in the third quarter, continuing a streak that started in the beginning of the year.
Milwaukee exports were up 23.5% in the quarter to $2.18 billion. The area’s exports are now up 20.1% for the full year. Milwaukee saw 21.3% export growth in the second quarter and 15.6% growth in the first quarter.
In the quarter, Milwaukee had the third strongest export growth among 10 Midwestern metros tracked by the U.S. Census Bureau. Only St. Louis, up 41.7%, and Columbus, Ohio, up 27.1%, saw stronger growth.
Combined, the 10 Midwest metros saw export growth of 15.8% in the third quarter and for the first nine months of the year.
Year-to-date, St. Louis leads the region in export growth at 38.8%. Chicago is second at 20.4% followed by Milwaukee.
Indianapolis is fourth, up 14.2%, Detroit is fifth at 13.7% and Cleveland was sixth at 11.5%. The bottom four included Peoria, up 9.7%, Minneapolis-St. Paul, up 6.1%, and Kansas City and Columbus, both up 6%.