Highly Diversified. Strategically Concentrated.
Epicenter of International Commerce & Logistics
75+ companies operating large distribution facilities
More than $130 billion of the country’s annual GDP
St. Louis regional industrial base is highly diversified but also enjoys strong areas of concentration, including beverages, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, detergents, aerospace, metals, and petroleum products. Major companies with production facilities in the St. Louis region or occupying large blocks of warehouse space include General Motors, Boeing, Anheuser-Busch InBEV, Mallinckrodt, Procter & Gamble, Dial-Henkel, Reckitt-Benckiser, Phillips 66, US Steel, Worldwide Technology, and many more.
The St. Louis region has been a leader in aircraft and auto manufacturing for the past hundred years, and today supports major facilities of Boeing and General Motors and their suppliers. These operations include aircraft manufacturing – which is unique to St. Louis among its peer MSAs – as well as light truck and utility vehicle manufacturing and nonferrous metal foundries. St. Louis has a high concentration of aerospace engineers, with a location quotient (LQ) of 3.83. Location quotients indicate concentrations of occupations with an LQ of over 1 meaning that the region has a higher concentration than the national average. Production and transportation occupations are strong in the region, which is home to more production occupation and transportation and material moving occupation workers than KC, Louisville and Memphis. The transportation, distribution and logistics cluster continues to be one of the region’s highest growth areas supporting e-commerce and the global supply chain through its multimodal capabilities and strategic location in the nation.
A Thriving Industrial Real Estate Market
As of Q4 2025, the region’s current inventory of industrial space is 185 million square feet (MSF) and an additional 4.5 MSF is under construction. Rent growth is on trend, reflecting a 1.4% increase per SF in Q4 2025 v. Q1 2025. At $5.11 per SF, rents are consistent with broader Midwest trends; lower than peer hubs and larger metros. An increase in projects under construction without aggressive rent escalation signals a steady, healthy and investable market.
Diversified Pipeline Service
Available pipeline capacity is a major asset for area manufacturers and energy companies such as Boeing, Ameren, BP, Phillips 66 and CenterPoint. The St. Louis region is a major node within the international network of pipelines transporting crude oil, petrochemicals and natural gas from all across the country– ensuring consistency of price and supply. Converging in St. Louis are six interstate natural gas pipelines and nine refined product pipelines.
Phillips 66’s largest U.S. refinery is in Wood River, Illinois, and supplied by multiple pipelines from both Canada and the Gulf. Built in 1917, the Wood River Refinery complex currently operates across roughly 2,200 acres of land and employs more than 1,100 employees, including onsite contractors. The refinery produces a high percentage of transportation fuels such as gasoline, diesel and aviation fuels, petrochemical feedstocks, asphalt and coke. Wood River’s finished materials are transported via pipeline, barge & ship, tank truck, and railcar.
| Crude Throughput | 346,000 Barrels/Day |
|---|---|
| Total Throughput | 360,000 Barrels/Day |
| Gasoline Production | 176,000 Barrels/Day |
| Distillate Production | 140,000 Barrels/Day |
| Clean Product Yield Capability | 81% |
| Nelson Complexity Factor | 11.0 |