Doing Business

The City of Belfast's economic prosperity was first built on shipbuilding and commerce in unglamorous cargoes such as hay, ice, apples, and fertilizer. During the 1940s, the poultry industry became Belfast's calling card; by the 1970s it employed nearly 2,000 and generated $80 million a year, and Belfast was known as the broiler capital of the world. Unfortunately, the industry suffered a rapid decline, and Belfast was unable to recover until the mid-1990s with the arrival of credit card company MBNA. Today, the City of Belfast has transitioned into a far more balanced and diverse economy, possessing strong representation in the tourism, arts, manufacturing, health care, education, agricultural, boat and shipbuilding, and financial sectors.

The City of Belfast is committed to the continued development of a diversified and robust economy that will create quality, good-paying employment opportunities. The City of Belfast is an extremely attractive place for businesses to relocate and expand because of its infrastructure, access to markets, well-trained workforce, as well as an unparalleled quality of life at an affordable cost.