Friday, May 30, 2003 | 11:06 a.m.
SUN STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS
UNLV said its Southern Nevada Index of Leading Economic Indicators fell beca' use of slowdowns in the Las Vegas-area economy in March tied to the conflict in Iraq. "The decline for the March 2003 index was only slightly larger than the decline in February 1991 (Gulf War)," UNLV said. "All in all, the great uncertainty of the war has been lifted."
Separately, two national reports today showed consumer spending fell in April but that consumer confidence increased this month.
In Nevada, the state Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation reported there were an estimated 60,700 jobless people last month, about 200 less than in March.
The state's 5.5 percent rate is below the national 6 percent and the California rate of 6.7 percent, the department said.
Total Nevada employment reached 1,060,100, a gain of 1.3 percent from a year ago. The job growth number indicates Nevada is keeping up with the slowly growing national economy. But the Nevada growth is down dramatically from the boom years of the 1990s, when year-to-year job growth in the state hit 11.2 percent in September 1994 with a major casino resort opening and peaked again with another resort opening in March 1999 at 6.9 percent.
Gov. Kenny Guinn said, "The April employment figures confirm that economic growth has slowed. Business and consumers remain cautious, so travel, hiring and spending remain below expectations."
He said the report "suggests that the state's revenues will continue to struggle to meet forecasts."
Department Director Myla Florence said the unemployment rate and the slow job growth "signify a difficult job market as summer approaches." She said the state-operated Nevada JobConnect System is available for those who want job training and help in finding employment.
The Las Vegas metropolitan statistical area that includes Clark and Nye counties and Mohave County in Arizona posted a jobless rate of 5.4 percent, down from 5.5 percent in March. There were an estimated 47,600 people out of work in the Las Vegas area, the department said.
Total employment in the Las Vegas area rose 1.5 percent to 798,700 compared to the same month of a year ago.
The department said a breakdown statewide shows that employment in hotels and casinos fell 0.5 percent to 203,800 jobs; construction grew 1.9 percent to 92,400; manufacturing remained stagnant at 42,400; trade stayed even at 189,100 and government jobs few 3.9 percent to 136,900 compared to a year ago.
While the statewide employment in hotels and casinos was down, it grew slightly in the Las Vegas market. The department said there were 163,500 jobs in that category, up 0.1 percent. The department said construction employment increased 1.5 percent to 76,300 jobs in the Las Vegas area; manufacturing inched up 0.4 percent to 24,100; trade grew 0.4 percent to 141,200 and government employment rose 4.7 percent to 91,100.
On Thursday, the state Department of Taxation said it collected 6.65 percent more in sales taxes in March than a year ago, driven in part by rising purchases of construction materials and autos.
Sales-tax revenue in March rose to $216.3 million, almost $13.5 million more than in the prior year. The increase reflects population growth and Nevada's rebound from a slowing economy and tourism slump after the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.
But the sales-tax revenue for the nine-month period through March remains $22.3 million below a forecast used to write the current two-year budget. April's report may show that "the economic impact of the war in Iraq" boosted the shortfall, Guinn said in a statement.
Nationwide, personal spending fell in April for the second time in four months as higher unemployment limited purchases and fewer hours worked restrained incomes, the government reported today.
The Commerce Department said the 0.1 percent decline in personal spending to $7.55 trillion at an annual rate followed a 0.8 percent rise in March that was double the previous estimate. Incomes were little changed at $9.163 trillion in April after $9.159 trillion a month earlier. It was the slowest pace of income growth since July.
But a second nationl report said U.S. consumer confidence rose this month amid signs of lower energy costs, rising stocks and falling interest rates. The consumer sentiment index compiled by the University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor, Mich., increased to 92.1, the highest since 92.4 last June, from a reading of 86 in April.
Consumers are feeling more confident because fighting in Iraq has concluded, gasoline prices are falling, mortgage rates are the lowest on record and stocks are up for a third straight month. Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan told Congress last week that such developments "augur well for the future." That may encourage household spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of the economy.
"The consumer is really betting with Greenspan, that most of the weakness has been due to the war, and now that the war is out of the way, the economy is going to experience a robust bounce in growth," said Lara Rhame, an economist at Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. in New York, before the report.
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