This section of the report focuses on the Marshfield area economy. Evidence of the local economy's performance is contained in Tables 7-14. These tables are based on information reflecting the local labor, retail, construction, and financial markets. A number of positive indicators emerge from the Marshfield area data. However, the local labor market appears to be relatively weak.

     Table 7 breaks Wood County wage and salary employment into major sectors and compares the estimates with the year earlier. Modest payroll gains appear in the service and government sectors, while manufacturing employment was unchanged. These small gains were offset by drops in trade and construction jobs. The decline in construction was large on a percentage basis but modest in terms of jobs.

     The Marshfield employment index slipped 2.6% compared to a year ago. This decline suggests a weak first quarter local labor market. The index uses the 1980 Census of the Population to estimate local employment trends. Assuming that the structure of the local eC9nomy remains relatively stable, the Census figures can be combined with monthly Wood County labor statistics to estimate local employment conditions. For example, the importance of the lumber and wood products industry is accounted for in this manner.

     A survey of twenty-five Marshfield area retailers reveals a relatively strong retail sector (Table 8). When asked to compare total sales in March with six months earlier (adjusting for seasonal factors) retailers reported strong gains. The outlook for six months hence is even more upbeat with the index rising to 72. Although these readings suggest a high level of local retailer confidence, interpretations of the survey will become more meaningful when index values can be compared with earlier readings.

     More evidence of a relatively weak local labor market can be found in Table 9. The volume of help wanted advertising in the Marshfield News-Herald dipped substantially below the level of a year ago. The falling index suggests that local labor demand is less than it was in March of 1985.

     Public assistance claims for the Marshfield area show a modest decline (Table 10). The number of claims dropped 3.3% compared to the first quarter of 1985. This indicator is a measure of local family financial stress. It is a lagging indicator and therefore is reflecting the modest growth of last year.     

     The unemployment claim data also indicates modest improvement over a year ago (Table 11). This information is collected from the district Job Service office in Wisconsin Rapids and thus reflects a five county area. Nevertheless, the figures are useful for interpreting trends in the local economy. The significant drop in total claims is further evidence of modest growth last year. The much smaller decline in initial claims indicates that the labor market was not as strong as earlier quarters.

      Lower mortgage rates gave a slight boost to local residential construction during the first quarter (Table 12). New construction had literally ceased during the first three months of 1985. Housing trends are difficult to decipher during the weather dominated fourth and first quarters. A better picture of the local housing market will be revealed in the next six months. Sharply lower long term interest rates should lead to increased activity in this sector.