Missouri Economy Indicators
Recent issues
Vol. 4, Issue 4: Electricity Prices for Businesses – March 13, 2023
Energy prices rank third in importance, behind labor costs and availability, for location decisions in a 2021 corporate survey. Missouri’s average 2022 electricity prices were 9.82 and 8.10 cents per kilowatt-hour for commercial and industrial customers, respectively. These rates were lower than the U.S. average for similar customers. Seasonality impacts pricing, with electricity rates increasing in the summer months as companies demand energy for cooling workers and equipment.
Vol. 4, Issue 3: Broadening Innovation – February 20, 2023
Roughly 6.6 out of every 100 jobs in Missouri can be classified as inventive — although this number climbs to 7.1 in metro counties and drops to 4.2 in nonmetro counties. Roughly one in four inventive occupations in Missouri are in manufacturing industries. Manufacturing makes up 14.2% of employment in nonmetro counties, compared to 9.6% in metro counties and 10.4% statewide. Despite this, nonmetro counties contain a smaller portion of inventive jobs in manufacturing industries.
Vol. 4, Issue 2: Childcare Access – January 30, 2023
There are roughly 4.5 available childcare slots for every 10 children under the age of 5 in Missouri — roughly 3/10 in nonmetro counties, and 5/10 in metropolitan counties. Roughly 400 Missouri childcare providers have closed since the start of the pandemic. Nationwide, 9% have closed during this period. The childcare shortage is estimated to cost Missouri $1.35 billion annually.
Vol. 4, Issue 1: GDP Trends – January 9, 2023
In 2021, Missouri stood 22nd in the nation with a $359 billion economy. Following a 2.7% decline in 2020, Missouri’s real GDP increased 4.6% between 2020 and 2021. Between 2020 and 2021, 73% of the state’s counties grew their economies. By contrast, only 41% of Missouri counties grew their economies between 2019 and 2020. Between 2020 and 2021, two Missouri sectors — arts & entertainment and accommodation & food services — grew 33% and 23%, respectively. GDP gains were also significant for the information sector (11%) in 2021.