Southwest Economy
Old oil fields reimagined as lithium sources
The Smackover Formation, extending broadly from East Texas to Florida, is ground zero in the effort to produce lithium from oilfield brines.
September 20, 2024
Economic Indicators
Energy Indicators
The annual U.S. Energy and Employment Report (USEER) from the Department of Energy shows that the solar industry had the highest number of jobs related to the production of electricity in 2023, and it outgrew all other power-generation categories. However, petroleum and natural gas remains the largest energy employer.
September 13, 2024
Rio Grande Valley
How the Rio Grande Valley rallies for growth
Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan's 360° Listening Tour is taking her to communities all around the Eleventh Federal Reserve District. The tour is helping deepen her understanding of the region’s people and economy by adding color and perspective that go beyond official statistics.
August 29, 2024
Modest growth in Texas service sector activity continues
Texas service sector activity expanded at about the same pace in August as the prior month, according to business executives responding to the Texas Service Sector Outlook Survey. The revenue index, a key measure of state service sector conditions, was little changed at 8.7.
August 27, 2024
Texas Manufacturing Outlook Survey
Texas factory activity exhibited little growth in August, according to business executives responding to the Texas Manufacturing Outlook Survey.
August 26, 2024
Economic Indicators
Texas Economic Indicators
The Texas economy saw payroll employment contract for a second straight month in July, and initial unemployment claims rose, partly due to Hurricane Beryl.
August 22, 2024
Texas Employment Forecast
The Texas Employment Forecast estimates jobs will increase 1.9 percent in 2024, with an 80 percent confidence band of 1.4 to 2.4 percent.
August 16, 2024
Southwest Economy
Texas community banks grapple with national stresses as elevated rates pose new tests
Despite community banks’ relative strength in Texas, the outlook through year-end 2024 comes with evolving downside risks, particularly involving unrealized losses on fixed-income holdings.
August 14, 2024
Dallas Fed Economics
Texas expansion moderates; labor market, price expectations normalize
The housing market slowed, with sales down and inventories rising. Data reflecting strain among small businesses and low- and moderate-income households appeared mixed. Some data point to rising stress, while others suggest resilience.
August 08, 2024
Southwest Economy
Cattle ranchers have no beef with sizzling prices as consumers keep buying
David Anderson, professor and extension economist with the Department of Agricultural Economics at Texas A&M University, discusses what’s driving cattle and beef prices from feedlots in the Texas Panhandle to supermarkets at a time when the size of the overall U.S. herd is at a more-than six-decade low.
August 05, 2024