From the editor's desk: Things could always be worse

Three of the nation’s lowest four metro unemployment rates are located in North Dakota and five of the nation’s top 12 metro unemployment rates are in either North Dakota or South Dakota. Not bad considering the national unemployment rate is hovering around 10 percent with many metros even higher.

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Sanford-MeritCare merger has not resulted in layoffs

Housing starts increase in Fargo-Moorhead despite economy, flood

North Dakota is the least economically stressed state in the nation

Sioux Falls economy continues to diversify

Three decades ago Sioux Falls was struggling through a severe national recession that gripped the city’s largely-agriculture-based economy and led to difficult times for the meat packing industry, manufacturing and retail trade.

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Signs of recovery expected in 2010 as recession fades

One of the nation’s most painful recessions in recent memory is essentially over, according to economists. Many businesses in the region have expressed optimism about 2010 and expect to see a rebound in business. But the economic recovery is expected to be slow and marked with fits and starts.

COVER STORY: Smaller communities search for ways to stand out in economic development

Larger cities throughout the Northern Great Plains like Sioux Falls, Fargo and Bismarck continue to grab headlines for their relative economic strength in the midst of a recession. But recent research has indicated that a growing number of employers and workers are considering leaving congested major population centers in search of a simpler life in smaller communities with less crime and shorter commute times.

• Eagle Creek Software Services
• Heartland Technology Center, Madison, SD
• South Dakota researchers draw lessons from persistent rural communities
• Check out a blog about rural development

South Dakota’s favorable business climate helping to attract companies

South Dakota has the lowest per capita state taxes in the nation, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, and the Milken Institute economic think tank ranked the state as having the lowest cost of doing business in the country in a 2007 report. Last year Forbes magazine and CNBC both ranked South Dakota as the best state for business.

COVER STORY: Communities differ in use of economic development incentives to attract companies

Nationwide the use of incentives is intensifying, sweetening the pot for companies looking for prospective sites to house operations ranging from manufacturing to customer service and back office support. Many communities and states have upped the ante to win the economic development sweepstakes at all costs. While most cities in the region have been fairly conservative, some mostly smaller communities have been more aggressive in attempts to lure factories, jobs and increased tax revenue.

• Mylo Einarson
• Jim Barringer
• Klaus Thiessen
• Check out a blog on economic development incentives

Economy facing a slow 'bathtub recovery'

It appears our economy is nearing the bottom of the recession, but it is important to realize that reaching the bottom doesn’t mean the recovery is at hand. This is especially true in rural America.

Economy offers opportunities for businesses

A down economy may be the right time to invest in equipment, infrastructure to prepare for the future.

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Job losses linger

Seldom do economic indicators actually tell you what shape the economy is in when you look out the window.

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Workforce shortages loom on the horizon

Before the recent wave of layoffs hit, attracting enough workers to the region was a major issue on the front burner in both North Dakota and South Dakota. Current labor market conditions have eased those concerns for the time being, but workforce shortages remain a potential long-term impediment to growth as the region’s population continues to age.

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Labor Force: Regional employment shows strength in face of national recession

Despite a recent rash of layoffs at big employers like Microsoft, Bobcat, Polaris, Arctic Cat and DMI Industries, a number of companies in a handful of industries in the region are still hiring.

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Sioux Falls job market remains strong

Sioux Falls was recently ranked as the top small metropolitan area in the nation for business and careers by Forbes.com. The city was also ranked in the top 30 in another recent listing of the nation’s top cities for business released by NewGeography.com in conjunction with Forbes that measured short- and long-term job growth.

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