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The unemployment rates are higher in central Wisconsin for second quarter 2007 than what
were in second quarter 2006.
Moreover, the level of total employment in Central
Wisconsin
fell by 0.4 percent from last year.
Employment results varied considerably among the individual counties.
Better employment results came from the industrial sector job
numbers.
Total nonfarm
employment in central Wisconsin grew by 0.9 percent and sales tax
collection growth was very uneven in the three counties.
Lastly, business leaders have become more pessimistic in their
assessment of economic conditions.
Table 2 shows that unemployment rates in the three counties and state have
risen over the past twelve months.
The unemployment rate was 5.3 percent for
Portage County, 4.9 percent for
Marathon
County, and 6.1 percent for Wood
County
during second quarter 2007.
The
labor force weighted unemployment rate for central Wisconsin was up to 5.3 percent, matching the
5.3 percent rate for the state.
Total employment estimates are generated by the state using a survey of
households.
Portage
County employment is
estimated to have grown by 0.8 percent from last year.
However, Marathon
and Wood county payrolls are thought to have contracted by approximately 0.8
percent. The total number of
people employed in central
Wisconsin
is estimated to have contracted from 150.4 thousand to 149.8 thousand, a
decline of 0.4 percent. In
contrast the state of Wisconsin and the U.S. employment
totals increased by 0.2 percent and 1.2 percent respectively.
Better employment news for the area comes
from the industrial sector employment figures, which are constructed from
data collected from business firms.
Total nonfarm employment grew by 1,300 positions or by 0.9 percent in
central Wisconsin.
Only two sectors registered a decline in employment: manufacturing
and government.
Percentage-wise, the leisure & hospitality sector and the information &
business services sector experienced the greatest amount of growth, 6.5 and
5.6 percent respectively.
County sales tax distribution is a proxy
variable for determining the health of the retail scene.
This is important because the retail sector gives us insight into the
overall health of the economy.
Portage
County collections grew by
7.8 percent or by about $100 thousand compared to a year ago.
Moreover, Wood County
collections jumped by a little over $200 thousand.
Marathon
County, however,
experienced a decline of 4.7 percent in terms of sales tax generation,
falling by $133 thousand.
Each quarter the CWERB surveys a group of
regional business leaders so that it can ascertain their views about the
economy. Our panel of business
people felt that the national and local economies had changed very little
from last period. If anything,
this group was more pessimistic of its assessment of the economy than it was
last period. Their pessimism
was also evident in their responses about future economic activity.
When asked to describe future conditions at the national level, local
level, and in their industry, they were less optimistic than in their
assessment in March 2007.
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