In a recent study released by Business Insider, Rhode Island’s economy ranks as 9th best in the nation. The ranking of all 50 states and Washington, D.C. relied upon six factors: unemployment rate, job growth, per-capita GDP, GDP growth, average weekly wages, and wage growth.
Here’s what they had to say about Little Rhody
#9 Rhode Island
“Rhode Island had the third-highest rate of wage growth in the country, with average hourly earnings increasing 8.3% between December 2016 and December 2017.
The state’s Q3 2017 GDP growth rate of 3.5% was well above the average rate of 2.9% among the 50 states and DC.”
Governor Gina Raimondo released the following statement after the surprising news.
“Four years ago, Rhode Island had the highest unemployment rate in America, and we were struggling to bounce back from the recession. We needed to rethink our approach to economic development, and that’s exactly what we did. We’ve invested in job training and education. We’ve opened our doors to new businesses and put cranes in the air. And we’ve slashed our unemployment rate by one-third. Today we have more jobs than at nearly any other time in our state’s history, and we’re still on the move. Our approach is working, and we need to keep going until every Rhode Islander feels included in our recovery.”
Business Insider’s 2016 ranking of state economies put Rhode Island at number 33.
Here’s the top 10
- Washington, DC
- Washington
- Massachusetts
- Texas
- Colorado
- California
- Utah
- Nebraska
- Rhode Island
- Maryland
