Manufacturing Economy Monitor
Primary Metals Manufacturing in Rhode Island
Primary Metals manufacturing added $308M of value to Rhode Island's economy in 2024, down 18.2% year over year. That ranks Rhode Island 35th of 51 states and DC for this industry. It is 5.6% of Rhode Island's manufacturing output. Nationally, primary metals is a $77.7B industry (the 12th-largest of the 19 manufacturing subsectors), per the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.
Output and rank
- Value added: $308M in 2024, #35 of 51 states and DC for this industry.
- Growth: -18.2% year over year.
- Share of Rhode Island's manufacturing: 5.6% of the state's total manufacturing value added.
- National context: primary metals is a $77.7B industry nationally, #12 of the 19 manufacturing subsectors (+1.6% year over year).
- Classification: durable goods manufacturing (BEA subsector 331).
Frequently asked questions
- How big is the primary metals industry in Rhode Island? Primary Metals added $308M of value in Rhode Island in 2024, ranking the state 35th of 51 for this industry, per BEA state GDP-by-industry data.
- Is primary metals growing in Rhode Island? Rhode Island's primary metals output shrank 18.2% year over year to 2024. The chart above traces the full annual series since 1997.
- What share of Rhode Island's manufacturing is primary metals? Primary Metals is 5.6% of Rhode Island's total manufacturing value added in 2024, 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 2026-05-12.