/EINPresswire.com/ -- EVANSTON, IL--(Marketwired - January 17, 2017) - Minnesota manufacturing employment inched up for a fifth straight year, though at a far slower rate than reported in previous years, according to the 2017 Minnesota Manufacturers Register^®, an industrial database and directory published by Manufacturers' News, Inc. (MNI) Evanston, IL. According to MNI's database of manufacturers, Minnesota added 946 jobs between October 2015 and October 2016, a bump of just a third of one percent.

Minnesota is home to 9,027 manufacturers employing 467,803. Manufacturing employment in the state has grown steadily since October of 2011, reports MNI, adding more than 18,000 jobs or 4% over the five-year span.

"Minnesota's solid infrastructure and top-notch workforce continue to be a draw for a variety of manufacturers," says Tom Dubin, President of the Evanston, IL-based publishing company, which has been surveying industry since 1912. "However, like many states across the Midwest and the nation, job growth has slowed due to a strong dollar and global competition."

Manufacturing job gains in Minnesota were led by the food processing sector, which grew by 1.6% and currently ranks as the state's top industry by factory employment with 67,877 jobs. Second-ranked industrial machinery also added jobs, up 1.8% to 66,966, while third-ranked printing/publishing held steady at 47,288 jobs.

For the full report on Minnesota manufacturing, including a regional analysis, click here or visit http://www.mni.net/news/

MNI's database recorded employment increases in a few other sub-sectors, including textiles/apparel, up 11%, and transportation equipment, which rose 2.7%.

These gains were offset by employment losses in electronics, down 2.7%; fabricated metals, down 2.4%; primary metals, down 2.3%; paper products, down 2.1%; and furniture/fixtures, down 2%.

City data collected by MNI shows Minneapolis remains the state's top city by industrial employment, with 56,167 jobs, virtually unchanged over the year. Second-ranked St. Paul accounts for 40,773 jobs, down 2.8%, while third-ranked Eden Prairie accounts for 12,104, down 1.2%.

Established in 1912, MNI is the nation's oldest and largest compiler of industrial information, offering tailored solutions to help customers connect with 430,000 manufacturers and suppliers. MNI's industrial marketplace IndustryNet: http://www.industrynet.com is a one-stop resource that connects buyers with suppliers of 10,000 + products and services, and allows users to obtain competitive quotes, create and view company profiles, post company news releases, photos, videos, job openings, and more. MNI's subscription service EZ Select: http://www.ezselect.com provides access to MNI's live interactive database of manufacturers. For more information, contact MNI at 847-864-7000 or visit http://www.mni.net

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