Chicago City Wire

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot recently announced that she will be traveling to Europe to discuss Chicago's flourishing economy.

According to a July 7 press release, Lightfoot will meet with the mayors of London and Paris, participate in roundtable discussions, attend policy briefings, and meet with business leaders while on her trip, according to a release.

“We are pleased to bring together city and business leaders to represent Chicago’s global interests in London and Paris,” said Michael Fassnacht, President & CEO, World Business Chicago, Chief Marketing Officer, City of Chicago. “Chicago’s competitiveness in the world is key to our strategy of driving growth, innovation, and a strong business sector. As such, the business delegation joining us represents the varying interests of the city’s business community, helpful in promoting Chicago as an investment-friendly city, as well, strengthening important, and long-standing, global business relationships.”

"Chicago's economy is thriving and our business sector has set records, keeping us competitive with top global financial cities," Lightfoot said, according to Chicago Tribune. "On behalf of our world-class city, I'm thrilled to lead a delegation of City officials and business leaders to London and Paris, where I look forward to discussing Chicago's economic strengths, speaking at Fintech Week London 2022, and learning new ideas to further develop our business community and economy." 

Despite Lightfoot's announcement, recent developments and reports indicate that not everything is positive for the business community in Chicago and across the state of Illinois.

Boeing, Caterpillar, and Citadel all announced within the last two months that they are pulling their headquarters out of Illinois, West Cook News reported. Citadel CEO billionaire Ken Griffin pointed to Chicago's violent crime as a factor in his decision to move his business to Florida.

Chief Executive magazine conducted a survey of around 700 business owners from every state and ranked Illinois 48th overall, meaning it is the third-worst state in the country for business, according to The Center Square. Only California and New York were ranked worse than Illinois. Texas, Florida, and Tennessee were ranked as the top states for doing business.

“We’re too corrupt. Our taxes are way too high. We have way too many regulations and we have massive debts, and that is plenty of reason enough for companies to not want to locate in Illinois, not to mention the state is shrinking in population so it's not a growth state to put your business in,” Wirepoints President Ted Dabrowski said, The Center Square reported.

KPVI News reported that Illinois’ GDP decreased by 2.5% during the first quarter of 2022, which was a larger decrease than any other state in the Midwest, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis.