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Texas Job Growth
Moseley and his members happy.
‘Firing On All
“Very, very bullish,” Moseley said. “We feel like 2018
should be good news for every business in the state of
Cylinders,’ Says Fed
Texas.”
By Paul Flahive
Texas could be a victim of its own success, with low
thats our business
unemployment rate and a lack of workers hampering
exas had a 3.8 percent unemployment rate in further growth. To address this potential shortfall,
November, according to the Federal Reserve Moseley said retraining of domestic workers is very
TBank of Dallas’ 2018 economic forecast. It is the important, and reauthorizing NAFTA is vital to Texas’
lowest rate they have seen they started monitoring it in future.
1976. “If NAFTA can be reapproved, we think the agriculture
sector has a very bright future and also technology,”
Dallas Fed’s vice president and senior economist Keith Phillips said.
Phillips said in 2017 the state’s job growth was 2.5
percent, but next year it will grow more quickly at 3 Texas ranks fourth in the number of jobs connected to
percent, adding 366,000 jobs. Phillips described Texas exports, 40 percent of which go to Mexico, according
as “hitting on all cylinders” with broad-based growth to the Fed’s Keith Phillips, who touted the importance
driven largely by energy and manufacturing. of maintaining trade patterns in light of troubled
NAFTA renegotiations.
“It’s hard to find any areas of weakness, either across
regions or across industries,” he said.

The state now ranks third in job growth nationwide,
a dramatic difference from 2015 when it was 31st as a
result of a shrinking energy sector.

San Antonio was largely unfazed by depressed oil
prices in 2015 and 2016. According to Fed data, the
city saw around 3 percent growth those years, powered
by federal spending, health care and leisure and hospi-
tality. San Antonio grow 3 percent in 2017 despite the
federal government spending less in the city.

Phillips highlighted oil and gas, rebounding with pric- “Trade in general helps every country at the bottom
es above $40 a barrel. He says the industry is again a do what they are best at doing, and the pie grows,” said
driving force for the state. Phillips, who describes himself as a free trade advocate
whose opinions don’t represent the Federal Reserve
Texas Alliance of Energy Producers economist Karr banks.
Ingham said whenever you see the rig count go up and
prices strong, it’s good for Texas. “Not all job growth is equal,” said Phillips, highlighting
the disparity of growth among Texas’ middle class.
“I think that’s what we have seen in 2017 with a
strengthening of all these things: general spending, tax “It’s mostly the middle class that has been seeing the
collections, and jobs being added, and a decline in the weakest job growth and wage gains,” he said.
unemployment rate,” he said.
Phillips and the Fed predict that will change now that
Texas has the third fastest job growth nationwide, the nation is near full employment.
which makes Texas Association of Business CEO Jeff

30 Deer Park Chamber of Commerce