State economy on 'precarious footing'
While economic indicators are generally positive for the state, the latest report from MassBenchmarks said that the state is in a precarious position because of the uncertain outlook of the global economy and a recent slowdown in U.S. economic growth.
The MassBenchmarks Current Economic Index found that Massachusetts continued to outperform the U.S. economy, with an estimated 2.3 percent annualized rate of growth in the first quarter of the year, compared with the national growth rate of 0.5 percent. State employment in the first quarter of 2016 grew at a 2.0 percent annual rate compared with the final quarter of 2015. Total wage and salary income grew at a 5.6 percent annual rate during the same period.
But this growth comes amid worrying global conditions, according to the organization. The organization cited concerns with China’s economy in particular.
A potential global slowdown is not the only concern, however, with the organization noting that Massachusetts has issues with uneven education as well as housing strains in the eastern part of the state especially. These factors come as the state continues to increase in median age, according to MassBenchmarks, making replacing workers highly important – which is impacted by the aforementioned factors.
MassBenchmarks is published by the UMass Donahue Institute in collaboration with the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.
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