How to Read BEA Statistics on U.S. Affiliates of Foreign Multinationals — Jobs, Value Added, Capital Spending and R&D

As of 25 October 2026 (KST); latest release: Activities of U.S. Affiliates of Foreign Multinational Enterprises, 2024, released by BEA at 8:30 a.m. EDT on July 10, 2026. The release gives the next release, for 2025, as "Spring 2027" without a specific date. Primary sources: https://www.bea.gov/news/2026/activities-us-affiliates-foreign-multinational-enterprises-2024 and https://www.bea.gov/news/imne-release-additional-information^[2][4]

Comparison basis: annual data, so the previous year is also the year-ago comparison; 2023 values are BEA's revised estimates published with the 2024 release. The 2024 totals are shown as published (for example, $1.52 trillion of value added); dollar changes are this page's calculations from the published figures and are approximate where totals are rounded. BEA notes: "BEA has updated its disclosure avoidance method to coarsening, which includes rounding, aggregation, and the use of ranges." The release page, PDF and supporting pages are BEA publications and count as one BEA primary source.^[2][3]

In three lines

1. These statistics describe the U.S. operations of businesses majority-owned by foreign parents: employment, value added, capital spending and R&D.
2. In 2024 majority-owned U.S. affiliates employed 8.57 million workers (6.1% of private-industry employment) and produced $1.52 trillion of value added (6.7% of business-sector value added).
3. The 2025 figures are due in spring 2027; a companion series on U.S. multinationals for 2024 is scheduled for November 20, 2026.^[2][3]

Affiliates. "A U.S. affiliate is a U.S. business enterprise in which there is foreign direct investment—that is, in which a foreign parent owns 10 percent or more of the U.S. business enterprise." "A majority-owned U.S. affiliate is a U.S. affiliate in which the combined ownership of all foreign parents, either directly or indirectly, exceeds 50 percent."^[3]

Measures. "Employment covers the total number of full-time and part-time employees on the payroll at the end of the U.S. affiliate’s fiscal year." "Value added is the value of the final goods and services produced by a firm's labor and property. Value added represents the firm's contribution to gross domestic product." Capital spending figures are gross: "they are gross of any sales, retirements, or transfers of previously owned tangible assets." R&D performed "includes expenditures for R&D performed by the U.S. affiliate, whether the R&D was for their own use or for use by others, irrespective of the source of funding."^[3]

Whole operations. "The statistics provide information on the operations and finances of U.S affiliates and cover the entire operations of the affiliate, irrespective of the percentage of foreign ownership."^[3]

Shares of the U.S. total. "These shares are computed by dividing majority-owned U.S. affiliate activity levels by measures of domestic activity from other data sets that are approximately comparable." "For the employment share presented in this news release, majority-owned U.S. affiliate data on employment in Puerto Rico and other U.S. territories are excluded to improve comparability."^[3]

Levels vs shares. Employment rose 0.2% to 8.57 million while the affiliates' share of private-industry employment slipped from 6.2% to 6.1%; value added rose 4.3% while its share slipped from 6.8% to 6.7% (published figures). The release does not state why shares fell while levels rose.^[2]

Spending on capital vs R&D. Property, plant and equipment spending rose 3.3% to $328.0 billion and R&D performed rose 5.3% to $95.5 billion; affiliates accounted for 12.4% of U.S. business R&D in 2024, a larger share than their 6.1% of employment (published figures; the comparison of shares is this page's).^[2]

By state and by owner country (BEA's statements). "By state, U.S. affiliate employment was highest in California (885,200), Texas (717,400), and New York (556,700). In all three states, U.S. affiliates in the manufacturing sector employed the most workers." BEA also states that "U.S. affiliates with ultimate beneficial owners (UBOs) in the United Kingdom, Japan, and Germany were the largest contributors to employment." and that "By sector, employment was largest in manufacturing and in retail trade."^[2]

First published vs revised 2023. "Statistics for 2023 are revised to incorporate newly available and revised source data. Preliminary statistics for 2023 were released in December 2025." The revision table lowers 2023 employment from 8,661.8 to 8,556.9 thousand (-104.9 thousand) and value added from $1,469.1 billion to $1,456.3 billion, and raises R&D from $87.8 billion to $90.6 billion (published values; differences are this page's calculations).^[2]

Growth rates vs levels. Applying the published growth rates to the revised 2023 levels gives about $1,519 billion of value added, $328.1 billion of capital spending and $95.4 billion of R&D, consistent with the published $1.52 trillion, $328.0 billion and $95.5 billion (this page's approximate check). The rounded displayed figures alone cannot reproduce the published growth rates exactly; for example, $90.6 billion to $95.5 billion gives about 5.4% against the published 5.3%.^[2]

Employment share basis. The employment share excludes affiliates' employment in Puerto Rico and other U.S. territories, so it is not simply 8.57 million divided by a national total that includes them (BEA's statement on comparability, quoted above).^[3]