Thursday, January 12, 2012, Dayton Business Journal By: Joe Cogliano
The Dayton area will add jobs in 2012, led by growth in health care and manufacturing, according to the latest Regional Economic Report from Wright State University .
The report projects the Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area — which includes Greene, Miami, Montgomery and Preble counties — will have about 376,000 jobs in the second quarter of 2012, a gain of nearly 5,000 jobs compared to the same quarter last year.
Defense work and business services on the national an international market also are expected to fuel job growth.
Thomas Traynor, an economics professor at Wright State and author of the report, expects a seasonal drop in employment during the first quarter of 2012, followed by a mid-year rebound.
“Overall, the regional economy continues to lag well behind its long-run potential in terms of employment and income, but is beginning to show extended signs of growth for the first time in more than a decade,” Traynor said.
While the positives are expected to outweigh the negatives, the report mentions several factors that could end up being a drag on the Dayton-area economy including the continued weakness of the national economy, another recession in Europe and additional defense budget cuts.
