2010 gross state
product boost eroded by inflation
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September 14, 2011 |
Economic activity in rural Idaho bounced back
from the depths of the recession, sending the 33
counties’ contribution to gross state product up
4.3 percent in 2010. But when adjusted for
inflation, especially the high cost of energy in
rural communities, the real economic activity
outside the five urban areas rose just 1.7
percent.
The value of all goods and services generated in
the rural counties last year was estimated at
just over $16.9 billion, up from $16.2 billion a
year earlier. That accounted for 30.6 percent of
Idaho’s gross state product compared to 30.3
percent in 2009. The rural economy contracted by
more than 4 percent in 2009.
But once inflation is considered, the actual
value in rural Idaho was estimated at just under
$15 billion, up from $14.7 billion in 2009. That
accounted for 29.5 percent of inflation adjusted
gross state product, essentially unchanged from
2009.
The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis estimated
the urban contribution to gross state product at
$38.5 billion in 2010, up just over 1 billion,
or 2.9 percent from 2009. Inflation had a lesser
impact on the five urban areas – Boise, Coeur
d’Alene, Idaho Falls, Lewiston and Pocatello.
Real gross state product was $35.75 billion, up
2.1 percent from the $35 billion in 2009.
Idaho’s total gross state product rose 3.3
percent to $55.4 billion in 2010 or 2 percent to
$50.7 billion when adjusted for inflation. That
ranked 30th among the states and compared to the
2.6 percent increase in real gross product
recorded nationwide.
In real terms, Idaho’s urban areas posted strong
comebacks from the decline in economic activity
they suffered in 2009 – except for Coeur
d’Alene.
Coeur d’Alene was the only metro area in Idaho
to see gross product decline for a second
straight year. After dropping 3.8 percent in
2009, gross product fell another 0.7 percent in
2010. Construction, manufacturing and real
estate – which account for about 30 percent of
the local economy – were all down again in 2010.
Only 31 of the nation’s 366 metropolitan areas
saw greater losses in gross product in 2010.
The Pocatello metro area, which also includes
Power County, posted an increase in gross
product of just 1.3 percent in 2010, but that
was a substantial move from the 5.1 percent
decline the region suffered in 2009 – the worst
in the state.
Manufacturing was up in the other four metro
areas, and construction even reported gains in
the Idaho Falls and Pocatello areas although
construction overall was down again in the metro
areas.
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