Florida’s Economic Growth Among Worst in Nation

Florida’s Economic Growth Among Worst in Nation

By Linda Kleindienst

   Florida’s economic growth was among the worst in the nation in 2008, according to new statistics from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.
   Out of 50 states, the Sunshine State ranked 48 – its economic initiatives mired down by job losses in the construction, finance and insurance industries.
   Alabama ranked 28th and Georgia, 41st.
   Florida, like Arizona and Nevada, experienced faster than average growth from 2004 through 2006, but the economies of all three states slowed in 2007 and then declined in 2008.
   North Dakota had the fastest economic growth in 2008 (7.3 percent), growing twice as fast as all other states, except Wyoming. The largest contributors to North Dakota’s growth were the agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting industries.  In Wyoming, which ranked 2nd, the largest contributor to growth in 2008 was mining.
   Alaska ranked at the bottom of the 50 states.