The August 2017 Oregon Regional Economic Indicators was released October 25, 2017. Full report is available here. We thank KeyBank for their generous support of this project.
Oregon Economic Forum:
We look for forward to seeing you at tomorrow’s event!
Thursday, October 26, 2017
Portland Marriott Downtown Waterfront
1401 SW Naito Pkwy, Portland, OR 97201
Program runs from 745am to 11am
Doors open at 700am for breakfast
Oregon Regional Economic Indicators:
Weakness in labor components weighed on the regional measures of activity in August, but this was partially often offset with strength in other components. Highlights of this month’s report include:
- Overall, for all regions covered by this report moving average measures (which smooth monthly volatility) remain above zero, indicating above trend activity.
- Some weakness in the local level numbers was expected given statewide job losses reported for August. Leisure and hospitality employment, for example, was neutral or negative for four of the five regions covered here.
- Note that employment data is often revised; we may see some earlier strength in the numbers revised down to smooth the series and reducing the reported acceleration in activity earlier in the year.
- Overall, the combination of softening employment in the context of a still solid economy measured by other indicators such as low initial unemployment claims suggests that economic activity may be constrained by supply side factors, particularly a smaller pool of available workers.
