MONTANA BUSINESS QUARTERLY

Volume 49, Number 1, Spring  2011

Paying for the Recession

Rebalancing Economic Growth

by

Patrick M. Barkey

How we will pay the full cost of bringing this recession to a close? The concern is not just about how we will close the government deficits that ballooned as economic growth went into reverse. it's about reconfiguring and rebalancing everything from household budgets to international trade to adjust to what might be called a post-housing bubble reality.

U.S. Recession Officially Over

Is Recovery Ever Going to Arrive?

by

Patrick M. Barkey

The worst recession since the 1930s ended in the summer of 2009. With sluggish hiring, weak growth, and a whiff of fresh banking problems in Europe and the United States, it doesn't feel like the economy is getting better. But with tax policy at last in place, with a weaker dollar and a slowly improving consumer mood, 2011 shapes up as the year that the recovery finally gets rolling in the national economy.

Montana Outlook

Stronger Growth Ahead

by

Patrick M. Barkey

After enduring the broadest, deepest recession seen in the state in 25 years, Montanans can expect to see better growth arrive in the state economy in 2011.

Local Outlook

Stronger Growth Ahead

by

Paul E. Polzin

There is almost no place in Montana that escaped the Great Recession. But the course of the recession did vary from county to county within the state. How did the recession play out in different parts of the state?

Housing Markets Still Struggling

by

Scott Rickard

Despite efforts by the federal government to increase home sales in 2010, the U.S. housing market continued to contract, with home sales declining by one-quarter. At the same time, the average number of homes offered for sale each month increased by one-half.

Travel and Recreation

Visitors Attracted to Open Space, Wildlife, and Character

by

Norma P. Nickerson

One marketing and promotion strategy that is growing popular throughout the tourism industry is geotourism, which incorporates the concept of sustainable tourism ? that destinations should remain unspoiled for future generations ? while protecting a place's character.Montanans have the power to direct the type of tourism development in line with the values of people in the state which, in turn, draws people to visit who hold the same values.

by

Gregg Davis

Understanding the role public health care dollars play in a state's economy is important, and particularly so for Montana, which has more baby boomers and veterans per capita than the rest of the nation. And both of these groups rely on public funding for their health care needs.

Outlook for Montana Agriculture

by

George Haynes

Montana farmers and ranchers have rebounded from a year of lower prices and production in 2009 to higher prices and near record production in 2010. U.S. net farm income is expected to increase by more than 30 percent in 2010, with much of the increase resulting from higher prices in the dairy and hog complexes.

Montana's Manufacturing Industry

by

Todd A. Morgan, Charles E. Keegan III, and Colin B. Sorenson

Despite the recent recession and extensive declines in wood products, manufacturing remains a substantial component of Montana's economy, with sales of $10 billion during 2010.

Current Conditions and 2011 Forecast

by

Todd A. Morgan, Charles E. Keegan III, Steven W. Hayes, and Colin B. Sorenson

The dreadful economic conditions experienced by the country's forest products industry in 2009 improved somewhat during 2010.