The Latino population in the United States has experienced explosive growth in recent decades, and this trend shows no signs of slowing down. The resulting demographic shift in the U.S. population is profoundly impacting the U.S. economy—driving growth and innovation in all industries. As this trend continues and accelerates, it has become clear that the success of the Latino community is critical to the growth and prosperity of North America. Latino professionals now occupy positions of power in major companies and can use their unique perspectives and experiences to help drive innovation and growth.

The Latino community's impact is tied to its demographic vitality: Latinos are the youngest and largest minority group in America and represent an increasingly large share of the U.S. labor force. Higher fertility rates, net immigration, and growing labor force participation rates all contribute to this trend. Additionally, Latino educational attainments are rapidly converging to the U.S. average, and the Latino community has significantly higher levels of opportunity-driven entrepreneurship than the rest of the U.S. population. These factors position Latinos to exponentially increase their contribution to the U.S. economic growth rate. Furthermore, Latinos of the Millennial, Gen Z, and Gen Alpha generations are playing an increasingly vital role in the economy and education.      

A key driver of U.S. Latino success is their massive $2.8 trillion buying power, representing approximately 22% of the U.S. economy. Their buying power is greater than that of Mexico and Brazil combined. If it were a country, the U.S. Latino cohort would be the 5th largest economy in the world, behind only the U.S., China, Japan, and Germany.

Latinos start businesses at a higher rate than any other demographic group in the United States. Latinos currently run over 4.4 million firms, collectively generating more than $800 billion in annual revenue. Across industries, they create jobs, drive innovation, and contribute to the overall growth of the American economy. In fact, Latina entrepreneurs start businesses six times faster than any other entrepreneurial cohort. Studies show that their entrepreneurship is a driving force impacting overall U.S. economic growth and a major contributor to the Latinos' upward mobility.

Education is an important part of the story of how Latinos are contributing to the growth of the American economy. Latino high school graduation rates have grown from 69% in 2010 to 90% in 2020. In the same timeframe, the number of Latinos attending universities or community colleges has increased by 36.7%, and they are attaining bachelor's degrees 2.8 times faster than any other cohort in the U.S. Accordingly, Latinos received MBAs and PHDs at rates never seen before. As more Latinos pursue higher education, they increasingly gain the skills and knowledge needed to succeed in various industries. As a result, employment for Latinos has increasingly shifted from traditional service employment roles to more professional roles in business, philanthropy, and government. At all levels, U.S. Latinos have increasingly significant impacts on business, technology, entertainment, sports, government, and not-for-profits. The result is higher salaries and additional discretionary income that will increasingly impact purchasing power, investments, retirements, entertainment, and every aspect of the U.S. economy.

Latinos added 628,000 new households in the last decade, more than double that of non-Latinos. A staggering 7 out of every ten new homes in the United States (70%) will be purchased by Latinos. Latino home ownership has increased 49% since 2017, adding 2.3 million homeowners to the U.S. economy. Demographic trends indicate this growth will continue, as the average age for a new Latino homeowner is 29 versus 38 for non-Latinos.                      

Historically, some have failed to fully appreciate the Latino community's economic impact due to the belief that Latino buying power resided primarily with lower wage earners in the service industry. Regardless of the historical accuracy of this view, the current facts and trends show a Latino population is increasingly tethered to their U.S. communities through homeownership, higher education, and solid careers. Latinos are taking positions as engineers, financiers, and in the technology industry, leading to more influential roles and greater discretionary spending and investment capacity.

From their entrepreneurial spirit to their burgeoning purchasing power and their increasing levels of education, Latinos are playing an increasingly significant role in driving innovation and growth across a range of industries. The massive growth and buying power of the U.S. Latino community is like a Latino economic tsunami hitting the United States. The desire and drive for prosperity and the continued success of the Latino community are critical to ensuring that the United States remains a leader in the global economy and that North America continues to thrive in the years ahead.