June 2, 2008
Panel predicts slow New England growth
The nation's credit crunch and housing slump will slow down New England's economy for the next five years, but it should avoid a recession, according to a presentation Friday by the New England Economic Partnership.
The group, which makes regional economic forecasts twice a year, predicts the region's economic growth to be flat through 2012, and gross regional product growth to remain below the national average. The forecast predicts job growth to be 2.5% over the next five years -- just half the expected national job growth, according to the Associated Press. New England will see a decline in jobs in four sectors -- construction, manufacturing, financial activities and trade -- and will see its personal income grow at an annual rate of 1.5% per year, compared with 1.9% for the nation.
But the group says New England will not slip into the recession that economists predict for the nation because of the strength of Massachusetts's economy, which accounts for more than 50% of the regional economy and will likely grow faster than the national economy because of a continuing demand for the state's technology products, the AP said.
The group, which makes regional economic forecasts twice a year, predicts the region's economic growth to be flat through 2012, and gross regional product growth to remain below the national average. The forecast predicts job growth to be 2.5% over the next five years -- just half the expected national job growth, according to the Associated Press. New England will see a decline in jobs in four sectors -- construction, manufacturing, financial activities and trade -- and will see its personal income grow at an annual rate of 1.5% per year, compared with 1.9% for the nation.
But the group says New England will not slip into the recession that economists predict for the nation because of the strength of Massachusetts's economy, which accounts for more than 50% of the regional economy and will likely grow faster than the national economy because of a continuing demand for the state's technology products, the AP said.
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