The Lehigh Valley’s Gross Domestic Product grew to a record $50.2 billion in 2022, with manufacturing continuing to be a leading driver.
When factoring in inflation, the Lehigh Valley’s economy grew by about 1% from 2021, according to the data released by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis on Dec. 7. 
“Crossing the $50 billion threshold in economic output is another sign of the Lehigh Valley’s impressive economic renaissance,” said Don Cunningham, President and CEO of Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corp. (LVEDC). “The strength and diversification of our economy, driven by a growing $8 billion manufacturing sector, attracts new business investment and creates job opportunities that make the Lehigh Valley more prosperous.”
Among regions of similar size (200,000 to 1 million), the Lehigh Valley is a Top 15 market for GDP and ranks 68th largest of all regional economies in the United States.
LVEDC tracks the GDP, which measures total market value of the goods and services produced in a region over a year, across the metro region, which comprises Lehigh, Northampton, Carbon, and Warren (N.J.) counties. Lehigh and Northampton counties make up $43.4 billion of the metro region’s $50.2 billion private sector output.
The Bureau of Economic Analysis, an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce, reports regional economic output annually with a one-year lag.
Manufacturing output rose to $8.1 billion, comprising 16% of the region’s GDP. That’s an increase from BEA’s adjusted 2021 figure of $7.3 billion
Nationwide, manufacturing makes up 12% of GDP.
The Lehigh Valley’s manufacturing output, from about 700 companies making everything from medical devices to food and beverages, ranks the region as a Top 20 market when compared to regions of similar size, and 56th nationally when compared to all metro regions.
Other leading contributors to the region’s GDP in 2022 were: finance, insurance, and real estate; education, health care, and social assistance; and professional and business services.
Since 2017, the Lehigh Valley’s GDP has grown by about $10 billion. When factoring in inflation, the Lehigh Valley’s economy grew by 5.5%, nearly twice as much as Pennsylvania over that time.
Gov. Josh Shapiro said the Lehigh Valley has “long been a driver” of Pennsylvania’s economic progress.
“From our Main Streets to our farms, we will have a Lehigh Valley sense of values, that sort of common sense, competitive approach that figures out how to come together to get things done,” Shapiro told the more than 700 people in attendance at LVEDC’s Annual Meeting in March at ArtsQuest Center in Bethlehem. “That will be the approach we take in the commonwealth.”
Factors driving the Lehigh Valley’s economic growth include a growing population, which increases the workforce and provides companies with the skilled labor that they need to compete in a global economy. The region’s 11 colleges and universities and three career and technical schools are a pipeline of talent, graduating more than 11,000 students annually.
That pipeline is an asset for Lehigh Valley companies.
“We’re thrilled that there are such good universities here,” said Carrie Eglinton Manner, CEO of OraSure Technologies in Bethlehem. “It’s a huge part of OraSure’s strength, both our history and where we're going. We have local people with global expertise.”
Over the past five years, 152 development projects tracked by LVEDC have created or retained more than 13,000 jobs.
The Lehigh Valley’s location, within a day’s drive of one-third of the U.S. population and near regional ports and international airports, makes it easy for producers to get their products to market.
“It was like an onion. Every time we peeled back a layer, we saw another advantage to choosing the Lehigh Valley,” Daniele Negri, Project Manager at Travaglini, said earlier this year about why the Italian company that designs equipment to cure meats and other delicacies chose Allentown for its first U.S. location.
The $50.2 billion output coincides with a year when the Lehigh Valley saw significant growth. It ranked No. 2 among regions its size (a population between 200,000 and 1 million) in terms of new economic developments and expansions, according to Site Selection magazine.
LVEDC is tracking indicators of continued growth, particularly among manufacturers in growing industries such as technology.
“We're looking at increasing our capacity here, growing more,” said Doug Dopp, Senior Director of Manufacturing at Broadcom and senior leader of its wafer fabrication facility in Upper Macungie Township that employs about 350 people. “Our business is doing very, very well.”
Top Contributors to Lehigh Valley GDP in 2022
- Manufacturing ($8.1B)
- Finance (data suppressed by Bureau of Economic Analysis)
- Education, Health Care, and Social Assistance ($7.5B)
- Professional and Business Services ($6.3B)
- Retail Trade ($3.5B)
- Transportation and Warehousing ($3.3B)
- Information ($2.9B)
- Wholesale Trade (data suppressed by Bureau of Economic Analysis)
- Arts, Entertainment, Recreation, and Food Services ($2.1B)
- Utilities ($642M)
- Agriculture and Forestry ($290M)
Lehigh Valley GDP
The Lehigh Valley’s economy is larger than the economy of two states, Vermont and Wyoming.
If the Lehigh Valley were a country, it would be the 88th largest economy in the world.
(Photo, of manufacturing at Lehigh Valley Plastics, by Donna Fisher Photography).