Demand soars in the U.S. for language translation and interpreting services

The need for interpreters and translators is on the rise and over-the-phone language services are thriving, this thanks to a recent boom in international business transactions and a steady growth in U.S. immigration.

The last few years have seen a growing demand for language interpreting services, driven partly by an increase in immigration to the U.S. over the last few decades, but also because of a recent boom in international business transactions with countries such as China, Japan, India and South Korea. In fact, more than 2,600 translation and interpreting companies now make up what is estimated to be a $3-billion industry, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

The L.A. Times reports that 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, according to the U.S. Commerce Department, from 2000 to 2010, the amount of foreign investments made in the U.S. actually tripled, and more than 5% of the nation's workers are now employed by firms that are majority-owned by foreign entities.

As a result, businesses that offer translating and interpreting services, including ours, Language Translation, Inc., are positioned to meet the exploding demand.

Alex Dupont

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