Optimism About Minnesota Economy Surged in December

Undated (KROC-AM News) - Minnesota business supply managers were apparently given an injection of optimism about the the state’s economy last month.

The December Mid-America Business Conditions Survey shows Minnesota’s overall economic index jumped almost 6 points from November to 52.3 last month. It marked the first time since last August the reading has been above 50, which is an indicator of future economic growth.

The new orders, inventories and employment components of the index were all above 50 in December, while the production and sales component came in at 49.

The author of the report, which is included in the data used by the Federal Reserve as it considers monetary policy, says Minnesota ended 2016 with a growth spurt. Creighton University professor Ernie Goss is now predicting the state’s will experience a job growth rate of around one-percent during the first half of the new year, which equates to a net gain of about 15,000 jobs between now and the end of June.

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