Statistics released today from the Census Bureau show that the number of women-owned businesses grew 20 percent between 1997 and 2002, twice the national average for all businesses. By 2002 — the most recent data available from the Census Bureau — women owned 6.5 million businesses or about 30 percent of all U.S. nonfarm companies. Their companies generated more than $940 billion in revenue, up 15 percent from 1997.

Census Bureau Press Release (Thursday, January 26, 2006)

Full report: 2002 Survey of Business Owners: Women-Owned Firms (850 pgs!)