TURLOCK - The San Joaquin Valley’s economy grew this year but at a slower rate than in 2013 according to the Business Forecast Report produced by Gökçe Soydemir. The Foster Farms Endowed Professor of Business Economics at CSU Stanislaus studied the economy of the valley which stretches from Tulare County to San Joaquin County.
The report found that employment increased most in some non-traditional sectors for the Valley.
Leisure and hospitality services, along with retail trade performed better than farm-related categories for the first time since the recession. While the drought has affected southern Valley counties, it hasn’t significantly dampened the overall economic picture for the Valley.
Among some of the report’s highlights were that education and health services employment now exceeds the pre-recession levels, trade, transportation and utilities employment, a farm-related sector, grew 3.81 percent in 2014, the government employment growth rate switched from negative to positive in 2014 and projections indicate that retail trade employment will grow by 4.66 percent in 2015 and 2016.
Valley home prices are expected to rise 15.81 percent in 2015 and 8.30 percent in 2016. The long term real state growth rate of 4.28 percent should lead to more balanced home appreciation that should prevent housing bubbles from forming.
Wage increases will likely run close to the inflation rate. Net loans and leases are now above pre-recession levels, aided by consumer balance sheets that are now in better shape.
You can read the entire report on CSU Stanislaus’s website.
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