Gross Domestic Product
Real GDP (a measure of economic growth) increased from 2000-2008 but has declined since then, falling from $38 billion to $36 billion by 2017.
Jobs
Private-sector employers have added 10,000 jobs since 2010, the national low point for private-sector employment. From 2017 to 2018 the private sector added 5,000 new jobs. There were 215,000 total jobs in the private sector in 2018, 15,000 fewer jobs than before the recession. Average hourly wages in the private sector grew from 2007-2018, going from $19.75/hr to $25/hr.
Manufacturing employment has mostly recovered from the recession, but is still below 2000 levels. There were 9,700 jobs in this sector in 2018, slightly below 2000 and 2008 peaks of 10,500 jobs. Average hourly wages of manufacturing employees have grown since 2007, going from $17/hr to $23/hr in 2012 where they have hovered by 2018.
There were 15,000 jobs in the Transportation and Warehousing sector in 2018, the same as before the recession but down from a peak of 16,000 in 2015, showing slight decline in this sector. The average wage in Trade, Transportation and Material Moving occupations grew from 2008 to 2013, declined until 2016, but has recovered by 2018 to $23/hr.
Unemployment
The unemployment rate in 2018 is 3.8%, down from the 4.5% rate in 2017. This is below the national average of 3.9% unemployment.
Housing
The House Price Index, a measure of the cost of housing, has increased since 2011, exceeding pre-recession levels (320 in 2018 compared to 280 in 2008), showing an increase in the cost of housing.
