NEW ENGLAND

Nov. 1, 2003
New Englanders have needed their crusty Yankee reserve to weather the storm that hit the area's economy three years ago like a blowing off the Atlantic.

New Englanders have needed their crusty Yankee reserve to weather the storm that hit the area's economy three years ago like a ‘Noreaster’ blowing off the Atlantic. It's been anything but a winter wonderland for New England businesses since the late 1990s. The industrial market is suffering the most. According to the New England Economic Project, manufacturers have cut nearly 150,000 jobs in the past two years. Add in the cuts in IT and the service segments, and you have an employment decline of over 267,000 jobs since 2000. Housing construction is slow, but prices are high. There is some good news: Grubb & Ellis says office vacancy rates in downtown Boston are relatively low. And with the $14.6 billion “Big Dig” construction project nearing completion, the Boston Harbor area is expected to be a hotbed of new construction. The market's diverse economic base will help the region dig out from this storm — eventually.

ELECTRICAL WHOLESALERS' SALES
(in millions of dollars)EW Estimates Final
1999 Final
2000 Final
2001 Final
2002 Forecast
2003 Forecast
2004New England 4,348.9 4,575.8 4,250.1 4,375.9 4,527.6 4,824.1Connecticut 1,680.6 1,768.3 1,642.4 1,691.0 1,749.7 1,864.2Maine 159.9 168.3 156.3 160.9 166.5 177.4Massachusetts 1,998.3 2,102.6 1,953.0 2,010.8 2,080.5 2,216.7New Hampshire 247.8 260.7 242.1 249.3 257.9 274.8Rhode Island 132.5 139.5 129.5 133.4 138.0 147.0Vermont 129.7 136.5 126.7 130.5 135.0 143.9EMPLOYMENT STATISTICSActualin thousands EC M C GNew England 38,859 769.0 3,981.1 898.4Connecticut 8,516 201.5 932.0 227.3Bridgeport PMSA 847* 28.3 102.3 23.1Danbury PMSA 503* 13.9 50.5 11.3Hartford MSA 2,789* 73.8 329.5 94.1New Haven-Meriden PMSA 1,398* 31.8 147.9 30.5New London-Norwich MSA 507* 19.5 68.8 42Stamford-Norwalk PMSA 797* 11.5 135.0 19.5Waterbury PMSA 478* 12.1 44.2 13Maine 2,485 62.6 356.2 91.3Lewiston-Auburn MSA 328* 6.2 27.7 4.5Portland MSA 806* 11.0 98.9 18.5Massachusetts 21,086 327.8 1,902.9 393.4Barnstable-Yarmouth MSA 427* 1.8 50.9 9.3Boston PMSA 7,252* 157.3 1,216.0 223.1Brockton PMSA 471* 9.4 54.1 16.4Fitchburg-Leominster PMSA 188* 10.5 26.4 7.6Lawrence-Haverhill PMSA 634* 27.5 79.4 18.6Lowell PMSA 608* 22.6 53.7 14.5New Bedford PMSA 256* 10.0 33.3 9.5Pittsfield MSA 180* 5.5 26.6 4.8Springfield MSA 1,156* 28.6 137.7 44.8Worcester PMSA 804* 26.8 127.2 31.1New Hampshire 2,870 81.5 352.9 80.8Manchester PMSA 591* 11.8 59.4 11.0Nashua PMSA 401* 21.3 48.0 8.8Portsmouth-Dover-Rochester PMSA 454* 12.3 74.5 21.0Rhode Island 2,387 56.9 274.5 62.5Providence MSA 2,288 71.7 296.8 64.3Vermont 1,515 38.7 162.6 43.1Barre-Montpelier 166* 3.1 18.2 7.6Burlington MSA 555* 15.5 57.6 15.5NA — Not available
MSA — Metropolitan Statistical Area
PMSA — Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area
CMSA — Consolidated Metropolitan Statistical Area
^ — This regional electrical contractor employment number utilizes both 2002 and 2003 employment figures. For directional purposes only.
EC — Electrical contractor employees for March 2003. Actual numbers.
* — Electrical contractor employees for March 2002. Actual numbers.
M — Manufacturing employees for July 2003. Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
C — Commercial account employees (professional and business services, retail trade, financial activities, educational and health services, and other services) for July 2003. Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics.
G — Government employees for July 2003. Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics