SHARE:
Friday's Daily Pulse
What you need to know about Florida today
Nation's fastest-growing areas are in Florida
Florida had four of the five fastest-growing metropolitan areas in the country from 2022 to 2023, led by the area that includes The Villages retirement community, according to data released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau. The population in the area that includes The Villages and Wildwood increased by 4.7 percent from July 1, 2022, to July 1, 2023. The only area outside of Florida in the top five was the Myrtle Beach, S.C., area, which grew 3.7 percent. [Source: News Service of Florida]
Business Beat - Week of March 15th
Get top news-to-know with Florida Trend's headline-focused video newsbrief, hosted by digital content specialist Aimée Alexander.
Florida free speech advocates say they killed several censorship bills this year
For the first time in years, free speech advocates said they scored major victories in the legislative session that ended March 8, pushing back against bills that would have expanded government censorship and likely led to more lawsuits. But they also said several bills did get through that they promised to challenge in court, adding to the millions of taxpayer dollars already spent by Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration fighting litigation against laws passed in recent years. [Source: Orlando Sentinel]
$60 billion question: How might Walt Disney World grow?
Disney is preparing to spend $60 billion on its theme parks worldwide, but an expansion plan for Walt Disney World, or any of its other parks, has not been made public. Attractions experts say the investment could mean original rides and lands for Disney World, such as a villains-driven domain; cloning of recent international projects based on “Frozen” and “Zootopia”; or even a fifth theme park, which would be WDW’s first since Animal Kingdom opened in 1998. [Source: Orlando Sentinel]
State prepares to drop China investments
Florida pension-fund managers are ready to begin the process of dropping investments in China-owned companies, anticipating that Gov. Ron DeSantis will sign a bill directing divestment. The bill (HB 7071), which was unanimously approved last week by the House and Senate, would require the State Board of Administration to develop a plan by Sept. 1 for selling holdings tied to companies that are majority-owned by the Chinese government, the Chinese communist party or the Chinese military. [Source: News Service of Florida]
ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:
› Florida citrus capital was top destination for U.S. movers last year
More people moved to a county rich with citrus groves located between two of Florida’s most populous metro areas than to any other county in the U.S. last year, according to estimates released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau. More than 29,300 people moved last year to the county between Tampa and Orlando, two metro areas where housing has grown increasingly pricey and the county is considered a cheaper alternative.
› South Florida startups raised $2.4B in VC in 2023. eMerge report reveals trends, top deals and more
Yes, 2023 was a bad year for venture capital. Yes, the Miami-Fort Lauderdale metro area fell hard, like other markets. But within the data in the 26-page eMerge Insights report released today are interesting findings and trends about where the money is flowing and why there is reason for optimism – perhaps cautious optimism – about 2024.
› Economic survey shows manufacturing expanding in Jacksonville
A monthly survey of Northeast Florida manufacturers by the University of North Florida’s Local Economic Indicators Project suggests a brighter outlook for Jacksonville than the rest of the country. A purchasing manager’s index derived from UNF’s Jacksonville Economic Monitoring Survey rose from 50.4 in January to 51.6 in February. Any number above 50 indicates manufacturing activity is expanding.
› Prolific multi-brand Southwest Florida firm buys another Midwest manufacturing business
The Hoffmann Family of Cos. in Naples, one of the more prolific multi-brand organizations in Southwest Florida, has announced its second manufacturing company acquisition in the past 10 days. The latest deal is for Gladstone, Michigan-based Besse Forest Products Group. Besse Forest Products Group operates a network of sawmills, wood drying facilities and veneer and plywood factories across northern Michigan and Wisconsin.
Go to page 2 for more stories ...
In case you missed it:
