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Report: Economic Growth Slowed In Oklahoma City, Tulsa In Recession’s Wake

The Journal Record

A study by the group Metro Economics found Oklahoma City recovered from the Great Recession more quickly than the rest of the country. But there's still bad news for the state's economy, according to recent economic indicators.

The number of jobs returned to its pre-crash peak by the first quarter of 2012, and it was 2015 before more than half of the cities in the U.S. could say that. However, things are slowing here again, according to The Journal Record’s Brian Brus:

Since then, however, Oklahoma’s metro economies have slowed down: Annual employment growth for 2017 is projected at 1.5 percent in Oklahoma City, 1.4 percent in Tulsa and 0.7 percent in Lawton. “There was a significant divergence in metro employment growth in 2015, as the rapid decline in oil prices handicapped economic growth in several regions,” the report by IHS Global Insight says. “While several Texas metros, for example, plummeted to the bottom of the growth chart, a number of regions without sizable energy-producing industries did very well.” “In 2014, the oil and gas sector had propelled Midland, Odessa and Tulsa to top status in job growth, and last year brought a staggering reversal to those and other energy-centric metro areas,” the study says.

The country’s average national wage per worker reached $56,471, the study says. Adjusted for inflation, that’s a 2.3 percent increase over the prior year, and rapid acceleration compared to 2009-2014.

From Brus:

Real wage increases averaged just 0.4 percent across all metros from 2009 to 2013, but accelerated to 1.7 percent in 2014 and 2.3 percent by 2015. The average annual wage in Oklahoma City in 2015 reached $48,726, a 1.2-percent increase since 2009. Tulsa wages edged out Oklahoma City at $48,860, although that represented a slower 1.0-percent increase. And Lawton dropped to $42,740, a 0.3-percent decline. “Following the recovery of most of the jobs lost in the Great Recession, 2015 at last saw a significant acceleration in wage gains for workers across the U.S.,” the study concludes. “It is vital for the national economy that these wage gains continue at a pace that can support high living standards in all metros. Wage and salary gains generate a virtuous cycle wherein economic growth can be sustainable and broadly beneficial for all households.

The study also looked at the “gross metro product” and compared it to national economies. Oklahoma City generates more than Uzbekistan, and Tulsa edges out Panama. The report came during the U.S. Conference of Mayors in Indianapolis this week. Oklahoma City mayor Mick Cornett became the president of that organization on Monday.

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