The
Charlotte metropolitan area (also
Metrolina,
Charlotte Metro, or
Charlotte USA) is a
metropolitan area/
region of
North and
South Carolina within and surrounding the city of
Charlotte. Located in the
Piedmont of the
Southeastern United States, the Charlotte metropolitan area is well known for its auto racing history (especially
NASCAR). The region is headquarters to 8 Fortune 500 and 7 Fortune 1000 companies including Bank of America, Duke Energy, Nucor Steel, and Lowe's Home Improvement Stores. Additional headquarters include Harris Teeter, Food Lion, Cheerwine and Sundrop. It is home to one of the world's busiest airports,
Charlotte Douglas International Airport, and is also the Carolinas' largest manufacturing region. The Charlotte MSA is the largest in the Carolinas, and the
sixth largest metropolitan area in the Southeastern region of the United States behind
Washington, D.C.,
Miami,
Atlanta,
Tampa, and
Baltimore.