San Antonio maintains business-friendly posture despite uncertainty

Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan’s second visit to San Antonio on her 360 Listening Tour centered on how Bexar County business and community leaders are handling uncertainty driven by tariffs, immigration and artificial intelligence (AI).

“We are a community that survives and works together,” an industry roundtable participant told President Logan. “That is one of the biggest strengths we have. We just have to stay focused on what we are doing and remain business-friendly.”

The 360 Listening Tour is a recurring series of trips to engage business and community leaders across the Eleventh Federal Reserve District. President Logan gains real-time insight into the state of the regional economy and takes information back to Washington as she participates in Federal Open Market Committee monetary policy discussions.

CEOs want to go, go, go on AI

San Antonio is experiencing high employment growth compared to other major Texas cities. However, community and business leaders, including members of the Dallas Fed San Antonio Branch board of directors, shared with President Logan some of their growing concerns, including tariffs causing challenges for long-term planning and pricing. They are also feeling pressure to quickly implement AI as Texas firms report surging adoption, including using it to help mitigate the effects of tariffs.

“There is a fear of missing out on AI,” an industry roundtable participant said. “CEOs and boards of directors are saying ‘go, go, go, go.’ But the problem is, they don’t know how.”

Employment continues to rise

San Antonio payrolls rose 3.7 percent (10,800 jobs) from March through June, led by gains in education and health services and trade, transportation and utilities (see chart below). Year over year, total nonfarm employment growth in San Antonio was 1.6 percent in June, on par with Texas (1.6 percent) and faster than the U.S. (1.2 percent).

The data dovetail with results of the Dallas Fed Texas Manufacturing Outlook Survey for July, which showed increased manufacturing activity in Texas and a rise in the number of manufacturers trying to hire workers.

‘The magic is in the collisions’

For 78 years, San Antonio’s Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) has brought together scientific minds to solve problems as an independent nonprofit research and development organization.

On a visit to SwRI’s 1,500-acre campus where more than 3,200 people work, President Logan heard about the Institute’s multidisciplinary expertise and patent development. With no endowment, SwRI relies on revenue from a 60/40 split of government and commercial clients to fund operations, while experiencing challenges from government funding cuts and private-sector hesitancy due to economic uncertainty.

“The magic is in the collisions we encourage across the campus,” Chief Executive Officer Adam Hamilton told President Logan, alluding to SwRI’s slogan “from deep sea to deep space.” Hamilton said one such collision occurred at a campus soccer game, when automotive fuel injection designers and chemists came together for a game and ended up chatting about their work. The discussion led to a project to develop technology to treat brain damage from oxygen deprivation.

President Logan talks to Speaker Joe Straus at World Affairs Council event

The World Affairs Council of San Antonio hosted President Logan for a conversation moderated by former Texas House Speaker Joe Straus. During the Q&A, President Logan addressed concerns about long-term effects of tariff policies and fluctuations in consumer sentiment due to economic uncertainty. President Logan delivered opening remarks prior to the Q&A, and the event also served as an opportunity to meet community leaders representing a wide range of industries.