Language interpreter services see demand soar (U.S.)

Source: Los Angeles Times

(…) The demand for such language services has been surging in the last few years, partly because of growth in immigration to the U.S. over the last few decades but also because of a recent boom in international business transactions with people in such countries as China, Japan, India and South Korea. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, more than 2,600 translation and interpreting companies make up what is estimated to be a $3-billion industry.
The number of U.S. residents who speak a language other than English at home has more than doubled in the last three decades, a pace four times as fast as the nation’s population growth, according to a new census report analyzing language data from 1980 to 2007.

During that period, the percentage of speakers of non-English languages grew 140% while the nation’s overall population grew 34%.

Moreover, the amount of foreign investments made in the U.S. tripled from 2000 to 2010, and more than 5% of the nation’s workers are employed by firms majority-owned by foreign entities, according to the Commerce Department.

As a result, businesses that offer translating and interpreting services are expanding to meet the exploding demand. More.

See: Los Angeles Times