The recently released August employment data for Colorado shows that YOY average job gains during the summer of 2018 were the 8th best in the 78 years that data has been recorded. The strongest two years of year-over-year employment growth were 1978 and 1972. Totals for both years were greater than 90,000. Average employment this past summer was 79,100 greater than last summer.

The strength of the U.S. economy provides a solid foundation for the growth of the Colorado economy. Nationally, real GDP growth is expected to be 3.1% this year, the unemployment rate is 3.9%, and more than 2.3 million jobs will be added.

At this point in 2018, the Colorado unemployment rate has been at or below 3.0% for the past 22 months, the state is on track to add 72,800 workers in 2018, and the year-to-date passenger count at DIA is 4.3% greater than a year ago.

The current update includes a special analysis that looks at the impacts of the recessions and recoveries of the last 28 years and how they shaped the current economy.

For details check out the cber.co Review of Colorado Economy – Update Through August 2018. The 2018 cber.co forecast, produced last January, can be accessed by clicking here.

Finally, don’t forget to look at the quarterly economic updates that were released last week by the Governor’s Office of State Planning and Budgeting and the Colorado Legislative Council. These reports provide a comprehensive overview of the state economy and the challenges facing our state government.

-courtesy of Gary Horvath