(WBAP/KLIF) — The Texas Employment Forecast indicates that jobs will increase 2.0 percent in 2024, with an 80 percent confidence band of 1.2 to 2.8 percent. This forecast represents a slowing from last year’s growth of 3.1 percent.
Last year still ended on a sturdy note despite expectations for slower growth ahead. “Texas’ 2023 job growth exceeded expectations, pointing to the resiliency of the labor market,” said Luis Torres, Dallas Fed senior business economist. “Texas ranked fifth among U.S. states in 2023 job growth. Gains were largely broad based across both major sectors and the state’s 25 metropolitan areas. High-tech services (Information) was the only sector that recorded job losses in 2023. Robust labor demand pushed up hourly wages, which rose nearly 6 percent last year.”
Additional key takeaways from the latest Dallas Fed report:
- The forecast suggests that 283,500 jobs will be added in the state this year, and employment in December 2024 will be 14.4 million.
- At the end of last year, Texas employment grew 1.7 percent month over month in December after rising a revised 2.9 percent in November.
- The Texas unemployment rate decreased slightly to 4.0 percent in December.
Listen to WBAP/KLIF report:
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