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MinnEcon Blog

Creighton U sees brighter Minnesota jobs, economic outlook

Creighton University economists produce a really good economic outlook index for nine Midwest states, including Minnesota. They’ve been good at anticipating ups-and-downs. Today’s report sees a brighter Minnesota jobs and economic outlook. The report dovetails pretty well with what we’re hearing from sources in MPR’s Public Insight Network. When we recently asked folks to take…
by Paul Tosto

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Youngest, oldest job seekers hit hard

People who once thought they could retire in their early 60s or scale back to part time are trying to stay fully employed in this recession. We also see an accelerated decline in the teen labor force. Are they connected? It’s a tempting a story line — oldsters and teens duke it out over jobs!…
by Paul Tosto

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Optimistic, realistic in the concrete business

Pretty much anything that’s built requires concrete. So we mark it as a positive economic sign when one of MPR’s Public Insight Network sources tells us he’s in the concrete business and is cautiously optimistic about the future. Mike Berg of St. Paul, wrote recently to tell us that he’d been hired this summer as…
by Paul Tosto

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Making budget in a recession. Ideas from small town Minnesota

We’ve focused a lot at MinnEcon on the struggles of individual Minnesotans. But how are small towns coping? In this and future posts, we’ll look at some novel ways town halls are making budget. First to Baudette, population about 1,000, on the Canadian border, just south of Lake of the Woods. Like many cities, it’s…
by Paul Tosto

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MinnEcon morning kick-in

Here’s a look at what we’re looking at this morning. From Minnesota Public Radio News Gov. Tim Pawlenty is downplaying warnings that Minnesota’s state budget will face a significant deficit over the next three years but the state economist says it’s very unlikely we’ll grow our way out, MPR’s Tom Scheck reports. EconCalendar Existing home…
by Paul Tosto

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Recession’s over? Are you feeling it?

We talked recently about anecdotal evidence that Minnesota’s economy may be turning around. So, OK, here’s the other side: Data show the state remains weak relative to most of its neighbors. An analysis and map by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia bear this out. The Philly Fed builds an index based on employment and…
by Paul Tosto

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Minnesotans’ economic forecasts: things looking better?

I have no hard data. Yet. But when we asked folks last week to take their economic pulse, the 50-plus responses we got were surprisingly encouraging. We’ve been asking Minnesotans MPR’s Public Insight Network for months to tell us what the month ahead looks like for their personal economies. Through most of the winter and…
by Paul Tosto

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Discouraged Minnesota workers? Maybe not

Lots of “good news, but…” reactions from the MN jobs data. Yes, the jobless rate slipped to 8 percent. But thousands left the labor force. Discouraged workers? Not sure the data bear that out. Yes, the labor force did fall 6,000 from July to August. But if you look at the range of data the…
by Paul Tosto

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Bright spots in an iffy Minnesota tourism season

Minnesota’s summer tourism season was mixed at best. But if your business was in outfitting, resorts or camping, the data we’re seeing and stories we’re hearing indicate you had a solid year. The best news seems to be coming near the Canadian border. Recent reports from sources in MPR’s Public Insight Network jibe with what…
by Paul Tosto

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Students, jobless, poor: A view of MN’s economy from the bus

Students, jobless, poor: A view of MN’s economy from the bus

Lindy Ellenbaum drives the 539 Metro Transit bus from the Mall of America to Best Buy headquarters and back. The recession, he says, is changing who rides and where they go. Ellenbaum, a source in MPR’s Public Insight Network, dropped us a note recently calling himself “one of the lucky ones” in this economy because…
by Paul Tosto

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