Wyoming’s Economy Continues to Rebound
Wyoming's economy continues to rebound following a severe downturn in 2015 - 2016, but its growth has slowed down.
That's according to a report the Wyoming Economic Analysis Division released Monday.
According to the report, Wyoming's gained 3,570 jobs in the third quarter of 2019. However, the state's unemployment rate increased to 3.7 percent, which is slightly higher than the national average.
The report says that Wyoming's "pivotal" industry — mining — lost 670 jobs.
Roughly half of Wyoming's job growth came in the construction industry, particularly utility construction including oil and gas pipelines along with wind power projects.
Personal income in the Cowboy State grew 4.3 percent in the third quarter from the year before. That's slightly lower than at the national level, which increased 4.5 percent nationwide.
The average home price in Wyoming increased by 5.2 percent in the third quarter of 2019 compared to the year before. Building permits for new privately owned homes slowed down 4.9 percent.
Visitors to Yellowstone National Park fell 1.2 percent to 2,499,186 while Grand Teton National Park also saw a decrease of 2.5 percent at 1,996,075.
Farmers produced less hay with total alfalfa production forecast to reach 1.4 million tons, down from 1.59 million last year. Sugarbeet production is expected to be at 838,000 tons while dry bean production is expected to hit 415,000.