Business Outlook for Large Employers Strengthens

Iowa Business Council Releases First Quarter Results
The Iowa Business Council (IBC) released it's quarterly Economic Outlook Survey. See the news release and report here. The survey is conducted quarterly to inform Iowa businesses and iowans about projected trends in the state's economy, which may prove useful for business and economic planning purposes. Twenty corporate members of the Iowa Business Council were surveyed during the second half of February, 2010. Increased levels in sales, capital spending, and employment projected for the coming six months has moved the Outlook Survey Index to 54.3 (an index of more than 50 means respondents are positive about the economy. The chart below reflects the index over the last 10 quarters.
The Chamber shares this kind of information with readers of the Chamber Blog from time to time. For past posts, see  "Chart of the Week" under labels in the right column of this blog. Comment on this post and provide your thoughts. Do you think the economic outlook is brighter for Iowa, especially Western Iowa, over the next 6 months?

Chart of the Week

Video shows monthly
unemployment percent changes by county:

January 2007-September 2009

To see changes in unemployment reate by county Here

Chart of the Week

Carroll 2008 Holiday Sales Increase Beats State Average

The Iowa Department of Revenue (IDR) released retail sales for the quarter ending December 31, 2008. This Chart of the Week pulls out Carroll and the ten counties in Iowa whose county seat town's population is closest to Carroll (click HERE to enlarge the chart). IDR's reporting lags about nine months, but is the most current data available on a statewide basis.

City of Carroll's retail sales totaled $56.8 million in the quarter vs. $54.8 million in the same period of 2007. This 3.2% increase is considerably better than the state of Iowa's .2% decrease on sales of $8.88 billion vs. $8.89 billion in 2007.

Of the ten comparably sized communities in Iowa, Carroll's increase of 3.2% ranks 6th. Three communites had decreases. Follow this link to view sales tax reports at the IDR's website.

Chart of the Week

Real Estate Sales Report - Carroll Multiple Listing Service

Chamber President Mike Franey of Mid-Iowa Insurance and Real Estate shared information on the status of residential real estate sales activity with Carroll Area Development Corporation members today. The table at the right points out how the Carroll Multiple Listing Service stacked up against like size towns' MLS. This report for the month of August, 2009, compares owner-occupied single family unit sales with comparable communities and the state of Iowa. Also included is information about median sale price in August and number of Days on the Market.

Is there information you are interested in concerning the economic health of Carroll and Carroll County? Take a look at the labels at the bottom right of this blog, click on "Chart of the Week" to see past posts. Let us know your thoughts and ideas for other indicators and we will find them for you. Just comment on this post or email me: cadc@carrolliowa.com.

Chart of the Week

Carroll Airport Much More Active Than Most People Know.

Did you know that the Carroll Municipal Airport (Arthur N. Neu Airport) serves an average of 35 visiting aircraft each week? Most people don't know how active the local airport is. But a recent economic impact analysis released by IDOT's Office of Aviation, the activity level of Iowa's airports is outlined.

A nice executive summary and the full report with details of the activity of each airport is available at http://www.iawings.com/. Click on the image to the right to take a look a the various activities at the Carroll Municipal Airport.

Chart of the Week

Where Western Iowa Job Seekers look for Work

Want ads and display ads are still the most used way for job seekers to find the employment opportunity they are looking for, according to Western Iowa Advantage's , "Workforce Needs Assessment". Released today by Iowa Workforce Development, the report illustrates the demand for workers and the skills required in the workplace. The chart shown above (click here or on the chart to enlarge) depicts the most used media for those searching for a job. This is helpful to employers who want to reach the most potential employees. Click here to view the entire report on CADC's website.

Chart of the Week

Iowa State University's Retail Trade Analysis Program for Carroll County offers an enormous amount of information comparing Carroll County to state averages and the other 98 counties in the state. Data from the U.S. Census Bureau and Iowa Department of Revenue are used annually to create this report.

The chart at the right depicts the trade classifcations assigned each county (click to enlarge).

An interesting bit of information is found by looking at the combined population of the various classifications:

Carroll County is in group "C - Less Urban-Small Trade Center". This group has nearly half the counties in Iowa (45), but only 22% of the state's population, while 10 metropolitan counties have about half of the population.

Carroll County compares favorably to its 45 peer counties in nearly every category: per capita income, population change, median daytime population change, per capita retail sales growth an sales growth increase. View the full report here.