Valley job market continues to grow

Nevada holds the No. 1 rank in total nonagricultural job growth for September 2006 over September 2005, with a 5.1 percent increase, representing 63,400 jobs, according to the current issue of the Blue Chip Job Growth Update.

Among metropolitan markets with a work force of more than 1 million, the Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale metropolitan area had the highest rate of growth in nonagricultural employment for September 2006 over September 2005, posting a 5.1 percent gain, which represented 91,900 jobs. The Pascagoula , Miss., metropolitan area ranked first among metropolitan markets with less than 1 million workers, posting a 12.3 percent gain (6,100 jobs).

Overall, the U.S. economy grew by 1,705,000 nonagricultural jobs in September 2006 over September 2005, a 1.3 percent increase.

The Blue Chip Job Growth Update has been the first-to-user source of complete federal employment data since its inception in 1992. It presents data compiled from the U.S. Bureau of Labor in an easy-to-read format, permitting state-to-state comparisons within 24 hours of the release of the data. The National Consensus Forecast of Labor Employment, Compensation and Productivity, which appears quarterly in the Job Growth Update, contains information from a panel of leading economists around the country.

The Blue Chip Job Growth Update is available online to subscribers. A sample issue and subscription information can be found online at ( http://wpcarey.asu.edu/jgu ).