By
The Associated Press
PHOENIX - Women-owned firms account for 27 percent of Arizona's privately held companies, 1 percent above the national average, according to new census data released yesterday.
Only 12 other states had higher shares of women-owned firms, ranging from the top-ranked District of Columbia's 30 percent to No. 12 West Virginia's 27.1 percent.
The other states above Arizona were New Mexico (29.4 percent), Maryland (28.9 percent), Colorado (28 percent), Oregon (27.6 percent), Hawaii, Virginia and Washington (all at 27.5 percent), California (27.3 percent), and Illinois and Michigan (both at 27.2 percent).
The U.S. Census Bureau counted 88,780 women-owned firms in Arizona generating annual sales worth $11.3 billion.
Nationally, there were 5.4 million women-owned firms, generating $818.7 billion in sales.
The data was from 1997, the latest available, and showed the number of women-owned firms increased 16 percent nationally from 1992 and was almost triple the 6 percent rate of all firms.
