Economic Snapshot Overview by Dr. Reid Cummings - December 2018
Posted on December 17, 2018 by Dr. Reid Cummings
Greetings, and welcome to the December 2018 Mobile Bay Economic Snapshot.
The holiday season is the most incredibly exciting, enchanting time! It always seems to offer so many special moments. Visiting with family and dear friends, gathering together in praise and celebration, helping so many of those in need, and expressing our deepest thanks for the continued healing of those closest to us, all combine to gloriously fill the busy last days of the year. Amidst the flurry of it all, so often one tends to take pause to consider the recent year and look to the sun rising on the landscape ahead.
So many of our leaders on both sides of the Bay recognize the importance of Baldwin and Mobile Counties working together on matters that affect the entire region. Working for federal and state policy decisions that positively impact regional transportation systems, pursuing regional economic development efforts, and promoting area natural resource and environmental awareness are just a few examples. As we look back at 2018 and think ahead to the possibilities of 2019, we thought it would be interesting to take a regional view as well and report ten key data points about the combined Mobile and Baldwin County regional economy.
- From 2013 to 2018, the region’s population grew by 3.6% to 630,806.
- Population growth over the next five years is expected to continue, yet at a slower 2.5% rate.
- There are 120,429 millennials in the region, which is only slightly less than the national average for comparably sized areas.
- Within the region, 31.4% of the population have a high school diploma, 22.1% have completed some college coursework, and 33.2% have an associate degree or higher.
- From 2013 to 2018, the total number of jobs increased by 4.7% to 275,210.
- The regional labor force participation rate also increased slightly over the same period from 55.8% to 56.2%.
- In 2013, the region’s unemployment rate was 7.94%; currently, it is 4.8%.
- The area’s top five industries—employing 60% of all workers—are Government (38,649 jobs), Retail Trade (34,913 jobs), Health Care and Social Assistance (33,853 jobs), Accommodation and Food Services (30,238 jobs), and Manufacturing (23,482 jobs).
- The area’s top five occupations—accounting for 50% of all occupations—are Office and Administrative Support (40,072 jobs), Sales (32,908 jobs), Food Preparation and Serving (27,272), Transportation and Material Moving (18,897 jobs), and Healthcare (18,039 jobs).
- Finally, the table below examines the always interesting question of where people work versus where they live.
| Where Talent Works | Where Talent Lives | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| City | Zip | Jobs | City | Zip | Workers |
| Mobile | 36608 | 25,463 | Mobile | 36695 | 22,953 |
| Mobile | 36606 | 18,736 | Mobile | 36608 | 17,974 |
| Mobile | 36695 | 14,668 | Daphne | 36526 | 14,673 |
| Mobile | 36609 | 13,563 | Fairhope | 36532 | 12,363 |
| Daphne | 36526 | 12,876 | Foley | 36535 | 11,630 |
| Foley | 36535 | 12,719 | Mobile | 36605 | 11,164 |
| Mobile | 36602 | 12,149 | Theodore | 36582 | 11,129 |
| Fairhope | 36532 | 10,952 | Mobile | 36609 | 10,512 |
| Bay Minette | 36507 | 10,398 | Bay Minette | 36507 | 9,064 |
| Gulf Shores | 36542 | 7,741 | Robertsdale | 36567 | 6,367 |
We hope this latest and final installment of 2018 has helped you gain a better sense of some important aspects of our regional economy. Should you need additional or customized information, please let us know. We look forward to providing timely, topical information on the Mobile Bay area in 2019, and until next time, from everyone at the Center, we wish you and yours all the best during the holiday season.
Source: EMSI