Economists: S.C. Jobs, Income to Grow in 2014
Monday, December 9, 2013 at 6:14PM South Carolina's economy is expanding and will continue to grow in 2014, barring major changes in the U.S. Federal Reserve's massive economic stimulus program, according to a report released Monday by University of South Carolina economists.
Business school economists Douglas Woodward and Joseph Von Nessen expect job growth — the single best economic indicator —to increase by 1.7 percent in South Carolina during 2014. They will present their forecast during the school's 33rd annual Economic Outlook Conference.
Gov. Nikki Haley, who is making her first appearance at the conference, is slated to speak Monday afternoon.
"We've now recovered to the point that some areas of the state have achieved pre-recession employment levels," Von Nessen said in a release. "Make no mistake, South Carolina's economy is expanding."
Von Nessen said the state's economy is growing faster than it did before the Great Recession, which officially began in December 2007 and ended in June 2009.
"But because the economy fell so sharply during 2009-10, we are only now getting into a true expansion," he said. "The good news is that more South Carolinians are feeling the expansion."
South Carolina's unemployment fell to 7.5 percent in October, the state's lowest rate in five years. The economists believe it will continue to drop in 2014. Their forecast projects steady growth across most major industrial sectors, led by construction, banking, retail, and tourism. Manufacturing also is growing, but at a slower pace, according to the report.
Von Nessen noted that wage growth has been relatively stagnant, despite the additional jobs.
"Too many South Carolinians are still working part-time because not enough full-time work is available," he said.
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