Four States - One Economic Block Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi. At first blush, these four neighbors along the North Central Gulf of Mexico seem to have most in common their world-renown reputation for hospitality, beaches, good food and fun times.

However, underlying this veneer is a strong, diversified economic base of shipbuilding, manufacturing, import/export centers, oil and gas exploration and refining, military operations and other supporting industries that position the region from Pensacola to Baton Rouge as a center for world commerce in the competitive global marketplace.

The charts on the following pages present specific information that defines the economic base of the region. What is notable is that each of the five regions -- Baton Rouge, Mississippi Gulf Coast, Mobile, New Orleans and Pensacola -- share a common bond. Litton-Avondale Industries builds naval and commercial vessels in the New Orleans Region and also along the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Numerous oil and gas companies have exploration and production operations offshore and onshore throughout the multistate region.

Perhaps just as important is the impact of military bases and support operations including the major Navy training base in Pensacola, world reserve headquarters in New Orleans and Keesler Air Force Base in Mississippi where some of the Hurricane Hunter operations are based. Mobile also has shipbuilding operations and a battleship. Now a monument to American stamina, the USS Alabama also is a reminder of the strategic location of the North Central Gulf Coast for U.S. military policy in the Americas.

Across the region, major port operations keep American goods flowing worldwide and bring goods from the emerging markets of Latin America to U.S. consumers. With the establishment of NAFTA and legislation such as the Caribbean Basin Initiative, the region will continue to grow in importance to U.S. trade.

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