NEW YORK -- U.S. Hispanics are becoming a real economic force, with Mexican-American families in the lead, a study by the New York-based Conference Board shows. The study, released Thursday, shows that Hispanic households across the nation will sharply increase both their numbers and economic clout over the next 10 years.
The number of Hispanic households is expected to increase at a faster pace than that of any other group in the United States.
Today's 10 million-plus Hispanic households will go up to 13.5 million by 2010, up from less than 6 million in 1990. In 2010, these households will control $670 billion in personal income, with Mexican-American households accounting for $409 billion of this total.
Households hailing from Central and South America will earn $107 billion by 2010, with Puerto Rican households accounting for $65 billion. Cuban families will account for $32 billion, with the remaining $56 billion being earned by Spanish, Dominican and other Hispanic households.
By 2010, the under-45 Hispanic market will increase to 8 million households, and its purchasing power will increase from the current level of less than $295 billion up to $397 billion. In other words, $3 out of every $5 flowing to Hispanic households in 2010 will be in the hands of this younger-than-average segment.
