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Even though many economic indicators were positive in nature and the
overall trend was encouraging, there were a few signals
or hints that the Marshfield‑Wood County economy has
become a bit soft. This of course is very similar to the
national situation where the
U.S. economy
appears to be on the brink of recession. The positive local
information comes from data concerning industrial sector
employment, help wanted advertising, and residential
construction. However, the soft spots include a shrinking labor
force, declining total employment, and increases in local family
financial distress.
The national economy can and does influence local matters on a lagged
basis. Given the precarious position of the national economy and
the ramifications of events in the middle east, it behooves all
concerned individuals to keep a close eye on the
situation.
Nonfarm industrial employment in Wood County continues to
increase with all categories posting gains,
Table 7. This situation runs counter to developments in
Portage
County
where job growth encountered some difficulties. Manufacturing
and services reached record levels of employment gaining 100 and
600 positions from last year. Overall there are approximately
1000 more people employed in the county's nonfarm activities or
a 2.7 percent gain. The CWERB estimates the Marshfield area
economy expanded by about 2.9 percent. This estimate is based on
the historic employment relationship between
Wood County and
Marshfield.
Retailers in the
Marshfield
area believe that store traffic was unchanged from a year ago,
Table 8. In contrast, sales are perceived
to have improved from the earlier period. Questions concerning
expected store traffic and sales provide a forecasting device
for future overall economic activity. In these categories the
local merchants predict that sales will be somewhat better than
in 1989, but store traffic is expected to remain at about the
same level.
After three consecutive quarters of help wanted advertising decline, a
reversal of this negative trend has taken place (Table
9). For second quarter of 1990 the index stands at 286
compared with 236 during second quarter 1989. This represents a
very healthy 22 percent surge in advertising. This is welcome
news for the community in light of recent layoffs at Weyerhauser.
By comparison the
U.S. help
wanted advertising index continues to lag behind the previous
year levels.
Table 10 and
Table
11
present data on local family financial distress. Here the news
is not as positive. For public assistance, new applications rose
from a monthly average of 26 to 31. Total caseload on the other
hand declined from 622 to 582 from a year ago. In the category
of initial unemployment claims filed, the number rose by 19.4
percent from 1989, while total unemployment claims increased by
an even greater percentage, 36.4 percent. Thus,
local layoffs appear to be having an impact on these
statistics.
A very important leading economic indicator and barometer of
the overall well-being of an economy is residential
construction. The information in Table 12
is very encouraging for the local economy given the softness in
construction nationally. Each and every construction
classification was significantly above last year's levels.
Highlights from this quarter's report are the number of
residential permits issued, 28, and the estimated value of these
new homes at nearly $2 million.
Nonresidential construction in Table 13
is presented without percentage changes from a year ago. As
mentioned in previous reports, this kind of activity consists of
large singular events. Therefore the numbers can be quite
volatile from one period to the next. The estimated value of the
two new projects in the Marshfield area was $920,000. Further,
the 12 alteration permits had a collective value of over $1
million. These numbers are important because of their
relationship to future economic growth and they also represent a
commitment on the part of local businesses to the area.
Table 14 clearly shows that local
financial conditions continue to expand and grow in the
Marshfield area. Local liquidity, as measured by the sample of
bank deposits, increased by nearly $17 million. Moreover,
lending in the
Marshfield
area shot up by a robust 14.5 percent or $20.9 million. This
latter figure is in contrast to the draw back in lending
reported nationally.
Table 15 and
Table
16
present data on the Clark County economy. The statistics are
presented in order to give the reader insight into the
economic conditions of an important Marshfield trading area. |
