Staff Report
There’s lots of talk these days about the health of the Texas economy compared to states nationwide.
But exactly how well is Texas doing?
WalletHub, an online research center, reports that Texas seems to be doing fine:
• 2nd – GDP Growth
• 15th – % of fast-growing firms
• 1st – exports per capita
• 8th – business startup activity
• 20th – % of jobs in high-tech industries
• 25th – annual median household income
• 14th – nonfarm payrolls change
• 17th – unemployment rate
Those facts look pretty good, considering that 2015 was considered a banner year for the U.S. economy, thanks to a strong dollar, job gains, lower oil prices, increased consumer spending, and general improvements in the housing and business sectors.
And, the International Labour Organization (ILO) expects steady growth ahead despite a slowing global economy. The ILO reports that the world economy expanded by 3.1 percent in 2015, a half percentage point less than had been projected a year earlier.
Unemployment increased worldwide in 2015 to 197 million, one million more than in the previous year and over 27 million higher than pre-crisis levels.
But Texas’ unemployment rate sits at 4.4 percent, as of April 2016, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. And when you look at Hays County’s unemployment rate for the same period – 2.9 percent – it’s no wonder that Texas’ economy compared to the U.S. (4.7 percent) and the international rate looks so good.
To come up with Texas’ 9th place rank, WalletHub rates Texas third in economic activity, 34th in economic health and 20th in innovation potential.
What state took first place? Utah, ranking 2nd, 2nd and 4th in the above catories.
The last state? Mississippi took that spot, ranking 51st (Washington D.C. is included in the rankings), 48th and 44th to the three categories.
What other issues did WalletHub review? Highest business start-up activity, with the top five states being (in order) Florida, Nevada, Utah, Colorado and california and North Dakota tying for fifth place.
Lowest unemployement rates were South Dakota, Colorado, Nebraska and New Hampshire all tying for first place, with Hawaii and North Dakota tying for fifth place.
The hihgest nonfarm payrolls change were Utah, Florida, Nevada, Oregona and Colorado, and highest median annual household income was Maryland, New Jersey, Alaska, Connecticut and District of Columbia.
Not all states are so lucky, though. Illinois, for instance, is currently in a fiscal free fall, with no budget for the second year in a row – putting its schools and social programs in peril. It also has the highest unemployment rate in the Midwest; it ranks 29th in WalletHub’s overall ranking of economies.
On the upside, California blossomed into the seventh larges economy – in the world , with a GDP of $2.3 trillion, which is comparable to Brazil’s 2014 $2.2 trillion GDP.
WalletHub looks at different issues through the months and asks experts for their input. More information can be found at wallethub.com.
