Texas economy

The Texas Employment Forecast indicates jobs will increase 1.7 percent in 2025, with an 80 percent confidence band of 1.1 to 2.3 percent.

While lagging indicators reflect resilient growth for the Texas economy, more recent survey data suggest diminished momentum amid elevated uncertainty about the outlook.

Malcolm Duncan, whose tenure as Waco mayor coincided with the city’s emergence as a destination and area economic hub, discusses how the city has changed and where its future fortunes and challenges lie.

Energy executives surveyed by the Dallas Fed reported an increase in the price of oil needed to justify drilling, as economic uncertainty and planned production increases from OPEC+ nations pushed oil prices down.

The Texas economy expanded in March. Employment and earnings both rose. The April Texas Business Outlook Surveys showed a notable decline in company outlooks.

Texas service sector activity grew slightly in April, according to business executives responding to the Texas Service Sector Outlook Survey. The revenue index, a key measure of state service sector conditions, rose three points to 3.8, indicating a small increase in revenue.

Texas factory activity continued to rise in April. The production index, a key measure of state manufacturing conditions, was largely unchanged. Other measures of manufacturing activity signaled contraction, however.

The cyclicality of industries and their behavior provide early indications of economic turning points in Texas and the U.S. and provide a timelier view than other data that are widely used to confirm downturns and expansions.