by Michael Pakko | Jul 29, 2021
The statewide employment data for June showed little change in Arkansas labor market conditions, and the newly-released data for metropolitan areas consistent with that conclusion. On a not-seasonally adjusted basis, unemployment rates in Arkansas metro areas rose by...
by Michael Pakko | Jul 22, 2021
After a brief weather-related contraction in February, consumer spending surged in March and remained elevated in April. Data for Arkansas Retail Sales shows that spending patterns in our state are matching the national data, with even larger increases relative to...
by Michael Pakko | Jul 16, 2021
Labor market indicators suggest that the Arkansas economy was treading water in June. The unemployment rate was unchanged, standing at 4.4% for the fourth month in a row and payroll employment was essentially unchanged. Arkansas’ 4.4% unemployment rate is less...
by Michael Pakko | Jul 9, 2021
The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis recently published state-level estimates of Gross Domestic Product for the first quarter of 2021. The report showed widespread recovery from the COVID-19-induced recession of 2020, with all 50 states showing sizable quarterly...
by Michael Pakko | Jun 30, 2021
Statewide employment trends have shown a slow pace of recovery over the past three months, and the data for the state’s metropolitan areas generally reflect that Unemployment rates were unchanged in five of the state’s metro areas, but declined slightly in...
