The number of businesses owned by minority women is rapidly growing on Long Island, mirroring a national trend that is strengthening the economy and generating jobs, business experts and entrepreneurs say.

New U.S. Census Bureau data on business ownership underscores the increasing number of firms in the United States that are owned by women who are in minority groups.

The census findings show that from 2007 to 2012 the percentage of firms owned by minority women climbed sharply — counting U.S. firms with at least $1,000 in annual receipts, and with or without employees. There were 1.52 million black-women-owned businesses nationally in 2012, a 66.9 percent increase from 2007. There were 1.47 million Hispanic-women-owned businesses in 2012, an increase of 86.6 percent since 2007. And there were 749,197 Asian-women-owned businesses in the U.S., an increase of 43.3 percent since 2007.

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