National
The nation's economy continues to improve. In February, Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan announced that the economy had shown impressive gains, but warned against the growing federal budget deficits that could thwart long-term economic health. (The Denver Post, Feb. 12, 2004). In other news, consumer spending was up while consumer confidence declined, primarily as a result of concerns about job growth, in the period up to 2/25/04. (The Denver Post, Feb. 25, 2004). However, by March the Consumer Confidence for the Rocky Mountain Region showed the biggest gain. The region showed an increase in the Index to 103.4 from 68.8. (Daily Camera, March 4, 2004).
Unemployment is constant at 5.6% nationwide with a growth in temporary positions. The slow growth in the number of full-time jobs following increases in temporary positions is contrary historic indicators. (Daily Camera March 6, 2004)
The stock market wavered around in February, finishing the month up, but with minimal gains compared to the last few months. (The Rocky Mountain News, Feb. 28, 2004).
The Commerce department reported that the U.S. trade deficit surged to an all-time high in 2003, 17% higher than the previous record set in 2002. The deficit was $489.4 billion. (The Rocky Mountain News, Feb. 14, 2004).
Regional
The Creighton University price index study, released in February, predicted economic growth in the mountain west over the next six to nine months, but also predicted possibilities of inflation. A separate study released on Feb. 2 showed that Colorado's manufacturing economy shrank for the third consecutive month in January. (The Denver Post, Feb. 3, 2004). By March the survey showed a strong economy in Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah. (Daily Camera, March 4, 2004).
In a surprise result of a survey on the fastest growing job markets, Denver, Boulder, Fort Collins and Colorado Springs all made the top twenty listing for their categories. The "boom town" survey identified the places around the nation expected to create the most jobs in the next four years. (Rocky Mountain News, Feb. 27, 2004).
Home prices in Boulder and Longmont grew only 1.07% in 2003, as compared to a U.S. average of almost 8%. The two cities ranked next to last in a report on 220 metropolitan areas. The same federal report stated that Colorado, as a whole, appreciated 2.7%, ranking it 49th in the nation. Flat home pricing growth is attributed to the lack of job creation in the state. Home prices in Broomfield were also flat, while those in Erie, Louisville and Superior declined. (Boulder Daily Camera).
