CHARLESTON — The office of the West Virginia Secretary of State has registered 1,718 new businesses statewide in April, Secretary of State Mac Warner said.

Summers County led the state in the percentage of new business registration growth for the month with 17 new businesses, a 2.99 percent increase, Warner said. Boone, Tucker, Mercer and Webster counties also had notable, according to the Business and Licensing Division.

Statewide, West Virginia registered 14,843 new businesses in the previous 12-month period, from May 1, 2020, to April 30, 2021. Summers County led all 55 counties with a 20.57 percent growth rate for the year.