Salt Lake City—The Salt Lake Chamber’s Roadmap to Prosperity Coalition, in partnership with the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute, has updated the Economic Dashboard for March to help business leaders know where Utah stands in the overall recovery. This tool tracks the state’s path to a complete economic recovery from the pandemic recession and provides actionable context for decision-makers.
“Utah’s consumer confidence continues to climb as the broader U.S. confidence dips for another month,” said Derek Miller, president and CEO of the Salt Lake Chamber and Downtown Alliance. “This divergence falls in line with Utah’s record unemployment rate and surging economy. Despite some headwinds, Utah’s economic rebound has been broadening and gaining depth across industries. Thankfully, several structural factors are at play in our state to keep us leading the nation economically.”
Three essential insights from the March 2022 Roadmap to Prosperity Dashboard include:
- Utah’s unemployment rate is lowest in the nation. Utah’s February unemployment rate of 2.3% is the lowest in the nation, tied with Nebraska.
- Utah home prices continue to rise. Utah’s home prices have risen drastically over the last year with a median home sale price of $486,000 in January 2022.
- Consumer Confidence increases in Utah. While Utah’s consumer confidence has been in decline, January and February saw upticks in Utah while confidence nationwide continued to fall.
The Dashboard is updated monthly, providing essential insights, tracking ten timely and leading measures, and sharing pertinent indicators since the start of the pandemic. This provides leaders with critical and timely information to make informed decisions.
“This new economic dashboard highlights the positive effects of real job growth and returning consumer confidence,” said Natalie Gochnour, director of the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute. “Utah’s economic resiliency continues to be a model for other states to follow. We now show no industries with job loss over the prior year and others like natural resources, have come roaring back. Our challenge now is to maintain this growing economic diversity and increasing consumer sentiment throughout the state.”
The Roadmap to Prosperity Coalition is a business-led coalition, supported by the Salt Lake Chamber, focused on implementing and promoting economic prosperity. The Coalition is co-chaired by Mikelle Moore, SVP and Chief Community Health Officer, Intermountain Healthcare, and Scott Parson, CEO, Staker Parson Materials & Construction. Investors of the Coalition include Mountain America Credit Union, WCF Insurance, Clark and Christine Ivory Foundation, Deseret Management Corporation, Intermountain Healthcare, Staker Parson Materials & Construction, and Rio Tinto Kennecott.
To view the Roadmap to Prosperity Dashboard, click here.