North Carolina's Celebrated Rebirth Proves No Match for This Downturn
10.01.09
The Tar Heel State lost a bigger percentage of jobs, 1.1%, than any other state from October to November 2008, shedding 46,000 positions, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. A record number of people in the state are now out of work, and its unemployment rate of 7.9% for November was the highest in 26 years, up from 7.1% in October and 4.7% in November 2007. Some state economic observers are predicting double-digit unemployment for 2009.
The numbers are a bad harbinger for the rest of the Southeastern U.S., most of which until recently appeared to be shrugging off the worst of the economic slowdown. For decades, high-growth states like North Carolina, Georgia and many of their neighbors showed extraordinary resiliency during national economic downturns. But increasingly, the region appears no longer able to stave off the slowdown.
In November, the South accounted for four of the top 10 job declines among U.S states, with North Carolina, Florida, Georgia and South Carolina contributing to a 0.47% regional loss in payroll employment, according to data compiled by Moody's Economy.com. It was the region's first collective monthly payroll loss since September 2003.
Source: Wall Street Journal