The national economy continues to struggle. The third quarter results show that inflation adjusted gross national product declined by about 0.6 percent from last year. Industrial production in the nation's factories fell by 2.3 percent, signaling that output is shrinking. Interest rates continue to tumble in the financial markets. Lack of demand for borrowing and efforts by the Federal Reserve have played a role in this development. Further, inflation is moderating because the national economy has cooled off and displays little sign of accelerating into a major recovery. 

     Unemployment rates in the area continue to be below those of the state and nation. Portage, Marathon, and Wood Counties have unemployment rates of 3.6 percent, 4.9 percent, and 4.5 percent respectively. Wisconsin, on the other hand, had a reported unemployment rate of 4.8 percent while the nation came in at 6.4 percent for the end of the third quarter. 

     Employment in the area is a bright spot for all concerned. Portage County total employment expanded by 1600, Marathon County by 500, and Wood County by 700. This represents a gain of approximately 2800 people. There are now 134.6 thousand people employed in the three county area. This is in sharp contrast to the 44.8 thousand decline reported for the state of Wisconsin. 

     Nonfarm employment also increased by a substantial margin. The jump in employment amounted to a 3.3 thousand gain from last year. Manufacturing employment now stands at 33.7 thousand, services at 41.3 thousand, construction at 5.9 thousand, and government at 15.6 thousand. Only one category, trade, fell from its third quarter 1990 total of 28.3 thousand to 27.0 thousand in third quarter 1991. This is a very impressive situation given the slowdown in the national economy. 

     Key industries in our area also participated in the expansion in job growth. These backbone industries, which support all economic activity in our area, grew by nearly 10 percent. Every classification, paper products; lumber and wood products; food processing; and finance, insurance and real estate expanded. Overall, these sectors account for approximately 31.7 thousand jobs in the Central Wisconsin region. 

     Business leaders in the area continue to be optimistic about the local economy and the future of their industries. Generally speaking, however, the level of optimism has dropped slightly since second quarter 1991. These responses are believed to be a result of the recently released negative reports concerning the behavior of the national economy. 

     The Marshfield‑Wood County economy appears to be slowing somewhat. Specifically, the national downturn appears to be influencing this quarter's results. However, the regional economy, while weakening, still remains in reasonably good health when compared with other parts of the country. This assertion is based on employment and industry indicators for the third quarter 1991.