For the fourth month in a row, North Dakota’s economy slowed.
Dr. Ernie Goss is a professor of economics at Creighton University and conducts a monthly survey of manufacturing distribution managers in the Central-American region. North Dakota’s reading on the business conditions index for June was 45.5, up from 40.2 in May — but still below 50, indicating a shrinking economy. Ghose says that many things contribute to this; Both North Dakota’s energy and agriculture industries are slowing down, he says. He said exports were down 16 percent last month compared to the same period last year.
Despite the challenges, Ghose says there are some overall positives from an economic perspective.
„The good news is, at the end of the day, they’ve got to get our food, they’ve got to get our energy, and we’re the most productive on the face of the earth. We’ll do well in the long run; it’s the USDA that predicts this farm income will drop in 2024.” to John Deere and other manufacturers of agricultural equipment.”
Ghose says inflationary pressures have also eased and the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates at its next meeting in September.