BOONE—Western North Carolina’s economy showed signs of continued weakness in March, with job losses occurring in most of the region.

“The regional economy lost quite a bit of steam during the first quarter of 2007,” said Todd Cherry, coauthor of the Western North Carolina Economic Index compiled at Appalachian State University. Cherry also is the Harlan E. Boyles Professor in Appalachian’s Walker College of Business and a Faculty Fellow at the Institute of Emerging Issues at N. C. University.

“It appears we are experiencing a change from the longstanding regional trend of strong growth,” Cherry said. “The national economy also has slowed, but this change has been more pronounced in Western North Carolina.”

Seasonally adjusted employment in the region fell 0.42 percent in March. Statewide, employment decreased 0.05 percent.

Only six of the 25 WNC counties had gained jobs in March. The limited cases of employment growth were generally found in the central foothill counties of Burke, Caldwell and Catawba.

The largest job losses occurred in the western counties of Clay, Graham, Jackson and Mason.

The seasonally adjusted rate of unemployment changed little, increasing only 0.1 percentage points to 4.8 percent for the region. The adjusted unemployment rate for the state remained unchanged at 4.5 percent, while the national unemployment rate fell 0.1 points to 4.4 percent.

While the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate within the region’s rural counties remained unchanged at 5.1 percent, unemployment rates increased in the region’s metro areas. Asheville posted 3.6 percent unemployment rate, up 0.1 percent from February’s numbers, while the unemployment rate in the Hickory-Morganton-Lenoir area increased 0.3 points to 5.9 percent.

Eighteen of the 25 counties had higher unemployment rates than a month ago, with Graham, Caldwell and Rutherford having the highest unemployment within the region. Henderson, Watauga and Polk counties had the lowest unemployment rates.

Seasonally adjusted initial claims for unemployment insurance, a leading indicator of unemployment, fell 15.6 percent in March. Initial claims decreased 25.9 percent in Asheville and 2.8 percent in Hickory-Morganton-Lenoir.

The Western North Carolina Index and Report provides a monthly account of economic conditions for Western North Carolina. It typically is released the fifth week following each month.

The report is compiled and written by Cherry, John W. Dawson from the Department of Economics, and Richard Crepeau from the Department of Geography and Planning. The index and report is a cooperative effort by AdvantageWest North Carolina, and Appalachian’s Walker College of Business.

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