Worried about a “rising tide of protectionist sentiment” the Partnership for New York City released a report on the benefits of direct foreign investment in New York City:

The report estimated that businesses in the city that were controlled from abroad accounted for about $58 billion of the city’s total economic output of $570 billion in 2006. Those enterprises employed nearly 200,000 workers, or more than 5 percent of the city’s total employment, the report said.

Mitchell L. Moss, a professor of urban policy and planning at New York University, said the city “depends on the free flow of people, ideas, goods and money.” Referring to Barack Obama’s statements that he might support opting out of the North American Free Trade Agreement under certain circumstances, Mr. Moss added, “Any effort to impose protectionism hurts us.”