Manufacturing Economy Monitor
Primary Metals Manufacturing in Kentucky
Primary Metals manufacturing added $2.5B of value to Kentucky's economy in 2025, up 1.2% year over year. That ranks Kentucky 9th of 50 states and DC for this industry. It is 5.1% of Kentucky's manufacturing output. Nationally, primary metals is a $77.8B industry (the 13th-largest of the 19 manufacturing subsectors), per the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.
Output and rank
- Value added: $2.5B in 2025, #9 of 50 states and DC for this industry.
- Growth: +1.2% year over year.
- Share of Kentucky's manufacturing: 5.1% of the state's total manufacturing value added.
- National context: primary metals is a $77.8B industry nationally, #13 of the 19 manufacturing subsectors (-1% year over year).
- Classification: durable goods manufacturing (BEA subsector 331).
Frequently asked questions
- How big is the primary metals industry in Kentucky? Primary Metals added $2.5B of value in Kentucky in 2025, ranking the state 9th of 50 states and DC for this industry, per BEA state GDP-by-industry data.
- Is primary metals growing in Kentucky? Kentucky's primary metals output grew 1.2% year over year to 2025. The chart above traces the full annual series since 1997.
- What share of Kentucky's manufacturing is primary metals? Primary Metals is 5.1% of Kentucky's total manufacturing value added in 2025, per BEA state GDP-by-industry data.
About this data
- Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (public domain). National quarterly values are seasonally adjusted annual rates. Corporate-profit industry detail reflects inventory valuation adjustment without capital consumption adjustment, per NIPA table 6.16D conventions.
Last reviewed 2026-10-01.