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in spending growth in Virginia for all purposes - personal and commercial, public and private,” Mr. Pearson said. Electricity consumption rose only 1.5 percent.
Payroll job growth remained steady across Virginia, with a 2.0 percent gain in August, the latest available figures. That two percent translates into 57,200 more jobs than a year ago, which Mr. Pearson called “a substantial accomplishment.” But the types of new jobs recently added, in declining economy areas such as retailing and state and local government, means that further substantial job growth is not likely in coming months, he said.
The state’s overall economic picture continues to be clouded by Northern Virginia, which has gone from being the “engine of growth” to pulling down the Commonwealth’s growth rate, Mr. Pearson said.
In an anylsis of summer 1990 retail sales and jobs, Mr. Pearson reported that while national retail sales rose 4.7 percent over the previous summer, Virginia sales fell 2 percent compared to last year. Summer employment figures indicate that metropolitan areas were not the primary provider of new jobs, he said, and non-metropolitan areas are the only places where construction jobs are increasing at a substantial pace.
The bureau’s evaluation of recent income statistics reveals a slight rise for the second quarter of 1990, but Mr. Pearson points out that Virginia’s personal income growth now ranks 22nd among the 50 states, well below its top-10 ranking during the 1980s. He said inflation is likely to exceed earnings in the remaining half of the year, confirming the arrival of a statewide recession.
92.3%