[ad_1]
If the domestic and global financial markets seem to be in constant turmoil, the real economy in the region centered around Baton Rouge is flooded with good business news.
However, record-low unemployment and a broader recovery from the pandemic that began in March 2020 have created serious headwinds from national policies, including tourism, which has rebounded to more than $1 billion in spending in 2022. remain.
The Advocate convened business leaders for its 2023 Economic Outlook Summit to explore some of the prospects for growth in different types, whether it’s for general employment or industrial construction projects.
As Mayor Sharon Weston Bloom put it, there have been “tremendous changes in the last few years.”
It’s an understatement, of course, but since that time, business leaders surveyed by the Baton Rouge Regional Chamber of Commerce have expressed fairly optimistic views about employment. BRAC’s Adam Knapp said the outlook includes “the lowest unemployment rate ever in the Baton Rouge area.”
He also reported that new business formations are growing and migration is coming to the area. But the main category of migration is the college-age population, a key issue for businesses and a focus of recruitment efforts by chambers of commerce.
At the same time, problems in the national economy are affecting the generally positive situation. CST Multifamily Group president and CEO Tom Delahey said interest rates are hurting homebuilding, especially the multifamily market.
“We talk about interest rates every day,” said Ginger Rollan, CEO of the Louisiana Bankers Association.
Laurent said her members are optimistic that customers are still willing to take out loans. But amid lingering interest rate uncertainty, these customers are moving cautiously.
“I think we have the capital, but I think the move will be a little slow to make sure all the questions are answered before we move forward with new activities and expansions,” she said.
Whether for businesses or new roads and bridges, construction costs are an issue and a critical need even in metropolitan areas.
Ochsner’s Tre Nelson says the health system wants to increase access to care, but every new facility he’s worked on in the past three years has been hit by inflation and interest rates. .
“Building a new facility costs a lot more than it used to,” he said.
At the same time, wages are rising in Baton Rouge, and whether that’s good or bad depends on whether you’re an employee or an employer, panelists said.
Despite rising wages, in a market with an unemployment rate of 2.6%, Baton Rouge employers have three open positions for every unemployed person looking for work, Knapp said.
Willie E. Smith Sr. Chancellor of Baton Rouge Community College said two-year colleges need to churn out new workers. All educational institutions will need to be more flexible going forward, he said, because of the demand for new jobs.
“If we were doing these things 10 to 15 years ago, we wouldn’t have seen this disparity in the workforce,” Nelson added.
Whether high school graduates or college graduates, panelists see the jobs of the future. This is good news for the region.
[ad_2]
Source link
