State’s Economy Bounces Back in Second Quarter

Connecticut’s economy posted 1.4% GDP growth in the second quarter of 2017, bouncing back from a rough start to the year.
The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis reports the state’s economy shrank 4.4% in the first quarter after posting no GDP growth throughout 2016.

The New England region posted 1.9% growth in the second quarter of this year, while the U.S. economy expanded by 2.8%.
CBIA economist Pete Gioia says the strong U.S. GDP numbers should have a positive impact on Connecticut’s economy this year.
“The fact is that Connecticut has been helped more by U.S. growth dragging it forward than by state-generated activity,” Gioia said.
“While our performance has been and will likely continue at half the rate of U.S. growth, national activity will lead to more U.S. customers for Connecticut goods and services.”

Information Strongest Sector

The state’s second quarter translates to an annual GDP of $260.1 billion, or 1.4% of total U.S. economic output.
Connecticut drives 26% of New England’s $1 trillion annual GDP, and has the region’s second largest economy behind Massachusetts at $523 billion.

Information was the strongest of the state's industry sectors—growing 0.44%—followed by professional services (0.33%), healthcare (0.32%), retail trade (0.27%), and utilities (0.17%).
Finance and insurance shrank 0.75%, the weakest of all sectors. Government declined 0.09%, followed by real estate (-0.07%), durable goods manufacturing (-0.05%), and educational services (0.02%).

National, Regional GDP Growth

Connecticut's second quarter GDP growth ranked 43rd among all states.
At 8.3% growth, North Dakota had the hottest economy of any state during the quarter, followed by Wyoming (7.6%), Texas (6.2%), Michigan (5.5%), and Oklahoma (5.5%).
Iowa's economy shrank 0.7% in the quarter, the worst of any state, with South Dakota (-0.3%), Delaware (0.4%), Montana (0.6%), and Nebraska (1.1%) rounding out the bottom five.
New Hampshire's economy grew 2.9% in the quarter, the strongest of the New England states and 22nd nationally.
Vermont's GDP expanded 2.5%, followed by Rhode Island (2.3%), Massachusetts (2%), and Maine (2%).