Colorado economy doing well compared to many states
The Legislative Council staff's June economic forecast, released last week, shows Colorado continuing "to suffer through one of its worst downturns in over 50 years." Unemployment reached a two-decade high – Colorado's rate was 7.6 percent in May – and the council's economists expect things to worsen. Their forecast shows the average unemployment rate rising to 9.6 percent in 2010.
The council's economic forecast shines a light on how Colorado is faring through the recession. Though we most often hear about the recession in terms of its national impacts, each state is experiencing it in different ways and to varying degrees.
Colorado is clearly struggling, but it has continued to function better than many of its counterparts, according to data released by the Economic Policy Institute and updated by the Bell to include May employment figures. When unemployment rates as well as overall and housing-industry-specific job losses are compared across the nation, Colorado falls in the middle of the pack.