US Economy grows in 3rd Quarter

After contracting for four consecutive quarters, the US economy saw economic growth of 3.5 percent this past quarter. According to the Commerce Department, the upswing in economic activity was helped in large part due to increased consumer spending as consumers took advantage of government program to purchase cars and homes. Many of these programs such as “cash for clunkers” have ended or will end soon so it will be interesting to see if the economy can put back to back positive quarters. Most economists, including ourselves believe that this quarter’s growth will eventually mark the beginning of an economic recovery. This recovery does not look to be very robust as unemployment remains high and credit is still proving more difficult to get, but just getting some major positive news could boost our confidence and get the economy going again.
Perhaps best demonstrating the weak nature of this recovery is the current unemployment picture. The Bureau of Labor Statistics released the September unemployment rates for the Kansas City area. For the third straight month, Kansas City’s unemployment rate stood at 8.9 percent.
Employment has always been a lagging indicator. The economy will show real growth for several quarters before we can expect any real growth in employment. We are certainly not out of the woods yet, but we can at least begin to gain some confidence that we are on the right path.

Kansas City Metro Economy is Nation’s 28th Largest

Kansas City’s economy (measured by gross domestic product) generated over $100 billion in activity in 2008 according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis. This ranks as the country’s 28th largest economy right between Cleveland and Cincinnati.
Kansas City’s gross domestic product has enjoyed steady growth since 2001 (when the data series was started), growing 13 percent in real terms. Even with the recession, Kansas City’s economy grew 1.3 percent between 2007 and 2008.