Huntsville Ranks #2 for Employment Growth
Huntsville has ranked second in Moody’s Economy’s latest report on expected employment growth. Read the Huntsville Times report:
HUNTSVILLE — Huntsville was ranked second out of 387 metro areas – and Mobile was No. 4 – in Moody’s Economy’s latest report on expected employment growth.
The Huntsville economy is beginning to recover from the recession, bolstered by the federal economic stimulus, the increased demand for durable goods and the ongoing relocation of federal and military jobs resulting from the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure Commission decision, according to Martin Soler Garcia, an assistant economist for Moody’s Economy.com.
In his analysis, Garcia predicts employment in Huntsville will grow 2.5 percent this year and 4.3 percent, 4.8 percent and 4.4 percent for the following three years. Personal income will increase by 3.1 percent this year, and grow by 5.4 percent, 7.3 percent and 7.1 percent over the following three years, according to the report.
Garcia forecasts the Huntsville area jobless rate, which in December was 8.1 percent for the Huntsville metro area, which includes Limestone County, will be 9.1 percent this year, then 8.2 percent in 2011, 6.5 percent in 2012 and 5.7 percent in 2013. The Madison County jobless rate was 7.7 percent in December.
Other Alabama communities’ rankings in anticipated employment growth were Auburn-Opelika area, No. 23; Montgomery, 29; Birmingham-Hoover area, 53; and Tuscaloosa, 61.
