The old adage “everything’s bigger in Texas” really does ring true sometimes. The nation’s second most populous state leads the nation in job growth and is consistently ranked as the one of the best climates for business in the United States.
In fact, a controversial campaign from Texas Governor Rick Perry [1] to try to woo business from other states to the Lone Star State has been somewhat successful as large corporations continue to announce the migration of their corporate headquarters.
According to Bureau of Labor Statistics data, job growth may be slowing. The Texas economy added only 19,100 jobs in June and the unemployment rate stayed the same at 5.1 percent, near full employment.
To be sure, there are many states in the union who would be envious of numbers like that but the problem is that it represents a significant decline from the rest of 2014.
Texas added an average of 37,433 jobs a month in the first half of 2014, up from 27,760 jobs a month in the first half of 2013 and the state led the nation with 371,000 new jobs created in the last 12 months.
Texas has been responsible for a large share of the heavy lifting for the job growth that has been a part of the economic recovery. The slowdown could be an early indicator that growth nationwide is preparing to cool. Despite the drop, analysts are not worried for now pointing to health migration trends and momentum gains in bellwether industries for the state.