According to recently announced gross domestic product (GDP) numbers, Louisiana is ranked as the 12th fastest growing economy in the nation. The same numbers show the state this year has recorded the highest GDP levels ever.
The Bureau of Economic Analysis listed the state’s GDP for the second quarter of 2018 at $249.7 million that grew at 4.3 percent, which is above the national average of 4.2.
“Louisiana’s economy is continuing to recover, but we are making tremendous strides,” Governor John Bel Edwards said. “This latest report represents the highest our GDP has been since the state began recording this information. We are not out of the woods, but, after reviewing this data, we have to acknowledge that Louisiana is on a much better path than it has been. Thanks to a bipartisan budget agreement and the fact that the state is now handling its finances more responsibly, I’m confident this trend will continue. It’s critically important for us to continue working together to make meaningful investments in programs that promote job creation and economic growth to continue moving Louisiana forward.”
KATC-TV in Lafayette reported, “The value of the goods and services produced in the United States is the gross domestic product. This figure also is measured for each individual state. In either case, the percent that it grows or shrinks from one quarter, or year, to another, is a way to gauge how the national, or state, economy is doing. Economists around the world also keep track of America’s GDP.”
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TONY MARKS Associate Editor