Richmond is having a tough time bouncing back from the recession, according to a report released Thursday.
The Richmond region was among the 20 weakest metropolitan areas in recovering from the recession, according to the report from the Brookings Institution. The reason: There hasn’t been enough growth here to offset the blow of losing major employers such as Qimonda, Circuit City and LandAmerica.
The report tracks economic recovery in the 100 largest metropolitan areas through the third quarter of 2011 and rates the level of recovery on factors including employment, housing and gross metropolitan product.
Part of the region’s problem comes from the concentration of industries that comprise the bulk of jobs in Richmond.
According to the study, many Southern metropolitan areas that specialize in government or transportation/warehousing are having great difficulty recovering from the recession. Richmond is among those, as is Hampton Roads.
In fact, 12 of the 20 weakest-recovering metropolitan areas are in the South, the study found.
Areas that have a greater concentration of high tech industry and auto production are recovering faster, the report found. Regions such as San Jose, Worcester, Mass., Boston, Provo, Utah and Austin are recovering the fastest.
Lack of job growth is also hindering the Richmond region’s recovery.
Although it ranked 22nd in unemployment with a rate of 7.3 percent through the third quarter, the study shows Richmond has struggled more recently in the change of unemployment and employment.
Since the trough of the recession and over the past year, Richmond hasn’t fared as well with its improvement in unemployment and rate of employment.
Richmond ranked 93rd (100 being the worst) in employment since the most recent quarter and 66th in the change of unemployment from a year ago.
In terms of economic output, Richmond ranks 34th in the change of its gross metropolitan product since its peak in the fourth quarter 2008. It ranks 72nd in that rate of change of GMP since the region’s trough in first quarter 2009.
The study also tracks the rate of change in housing prices since the region’s peak and trough.
Housing prices in Richmond peaked in the first quarter 2007, according to the study. Since then, prices have fallen 25.9 percent region-wide, ranking it at 56 out of 100.
Prices as of the end of the third quarter fell 10.6 percent from the previous year, the 79th worst rate of change.
Among the 100 areas measured, the study found that growth has been widespread, but generally very slow in terms of jobs and economic output.
Output growth increased in nearly all the areas included in the study during the third quarter, but job growth slowed in most and unemployment remained very high.
Richmond is having a tough time bouncing back from the recession, according to a report released Thursday.
The Richmond region was among the 20 weakest metropolitan areas in recovering from the recession, according to the report from the Brookings Institution. The reason: There hasn’t been enough growth here to offset the blow of losing major employers such as Qimonda, Circuit City and LandAmerica.
The report tracks economic recovery in the 100 largest metropolitan areas through the third quarter of 2011 and rates the level of recovery on factors including employment, housing and gross metropolitan product.
Part of the region’s problem comes from the concentration of industries that comprise the bulk of jobs in Richmond.
According to the study, many Southern metropolitan areas that specialize in government or transportation/warehousing are having great difficulty recovering from the recession. Richmond is among those, as is Hampton Roads.
In fact, 12 of the 20 weakest-recovering metropolitan areas are in the South, the study found.
Areas that have a greater concentration of high tech industry and auto production are recovering faster, the report found. Regions such as San Jose, Worcester, Mass., Boston, Provo, Utah and Austin are recovering the fastest.
Lack of job growth is also hindering the Richmond region’s recovery.
Although it ranked 22nd in unemployment with a rate of 7.3 percent through the third quarter, the study shows Richmond has struggled more recently in the change of unemployment and employment.
Since the trough of the recession and over the past year, Richmond hasn’t fared as well with its improvement in unemployment and rate of employment.
Richmond ranked 93rd (100 being the worst) in employment since the most recent quarter and 66th in the change of unemployment from a year ago.
In terms of economic output, Richmond ranks 34th in the change of its gross metropolitan product since its peak in the fourth quarter 2008. It ranks 72nd in that rate of change of GMP since the region’s trough in first quarter 2009.
The study also tracks the rate of change in housing prices since the region’s peak and trough.
Housing prices in Richmond peaked in the first quarter 2007, according to the study. Since then, prices have fallen 25.9 percent region-wide, ranking it at 56 out of 100.
Prices as of the end of the third quarter fell 10.6 percent from the previous year, the 79th worst rate of change.
Among the 100 areas measured, the study found that growth has been widespread, but generally very slow in terms of jobs and economic output.
Output growth increased in nearly all the areas included in the study during the third quarter, but job growth slowed in most and unemployment remained very high.
This ranking is something we’ve all known for a while now… Richmond has done absolutely nothing to better itself like so many other metros have. Oh yea, CapOne added some jobs. They’ll just be gone in a few years when they do their usual head count reductions again.