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EMBARGOED UNTIL RELEASE AT 8:30 A.M. EDT, Tuesday, September 18, 2018

BEA 18-46

Gross Domestic Product by Metropolitan Area, 2017

Professional and Business Services Led Growth Across Metropolitan Areas in 2017

Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased in 312 out of 383 metropolitan areas in 2017 according to statistics on the geographic breakout of GDP released today by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. The percent change in real GDP by metropolitan area ranged from 12.1 percent in Odessa, TX to -7.8 percent in Enid, OK (table 2).

Percent Change in Real GDP by Metropolitan Area

Real GDP for U.S. metropolitan areas increased 2.1 percent in 2017, led by growth in professional and business services; wholesale and retail trade; and finance, insurance, real estate, rental, and leasing (table 3).

Highlights

Professional and business services increased 3.5 percent across the nation's metropolitan areas. This industry contributed to growth in 317 metropolitan areas, most notably in Midland, MI which increased 9.5 percent.
Wholesale and retail trade increased 3.2 percent. This industry contributed to growth in 323 metropolitan areas, and was the leading contributor to growth in Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL and Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA, which increased 2.4 percent and 5.2 percent, respectively.
Finance, insurance, real estate, rental, and leasing increased 1.5 percent. This industry contributed to growth in 237 metropolitan areas, and made major contributions to growth in Wheeling, WV-OH and Athens-Clark County, GA, which increased 10.9 percent and 4.9 percent, respectively.
Natural resources and mining increased 2.2 percent. Although this industry wasn't a large contributor overall, it did make significant contributions in several metropolitan areas. Notable increases in this industry occurred in Beckley, WV and Odessa, TX, which increased 9.6 percent and 12.1 percent, respectively.

Large Metropolitan Area Highlights

Of the large metropolitan areas, those with population greater than two million, Austin-Round Rock, TX (6.9 percent) and Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA (5.2 percent) had the largest increases in real GDP. Increases in Austin-Round Rock, TX and Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA were led by increases in wholesale and retail trade.
Real GDP in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugarland, TX was unchanged from the previous year making it the only large metropolitan area not to increase. Professional and business services subtracted the most from growth in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugarland, TX offsetting notable contributions from natural resources and mining and nondurable-goods manufacturing.

Small Metropolitan Area Highlights

Of the small metropolitan areas, those with population less than two million, Odessa, TX (12.1 percent) and Elkhart-Goshen, IN (11.3 percent) had the largest increases in real GDP. Odessa, TX was led by an increase in natural resources and mining, while Elkhart-Goshen, IN was led by an increase in durable goods manufacturing.
The largest decreases in real GDP for small metropolitan areas were Enid, OK (-7.8 percent) and Visalia-Porterville, CA (-6.6 percent). Natural resources and mining subtracted from growth in Enid, OK, while finance, insurance, real estate, rental, and leasing subtracted from growth in Visalia-Porterville, CA.

Updates to Gross Domestic Product by Metropolitan Area

In addition to the statistics presented in this news release, BEA also revised GDP by metropolitan area statistics for 2001–2016. This update incorporated revised GDP by state statistics published in May 2018 and revised earnings statistics from BEA's Local Area Personal Income published in November 2017. These statistics do not yet reflect the revised benchmark NIPA statistics released in July 2018.

More metropolitan area highlights can be found on the regional highlights pages that accompany this release.

Full Release & Tables (PDF) Updated to include data tables.

Tables Only (Excel)

Regional Highlights and Maps

Uses of Statistics

High-Resolution Map

Ralph Rodriguez

(301) 278-9631

Regional

Sharon Panek

(301) 278-9228

GDPByMetro@bea.gov

News Media

Jeannine Aversa

(301) 278-9003

Jeannine.Aversa@bea.gov

Additional Information

Resources

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Historical time series for these estimates can be accessed in BEA's Interactive Data Application.
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For more on BEA's statistics, see our monthly online journal, the Survey of Current Business.
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Definitions

Gross domestic product (GDP) by metropolitan area is the sub-state counterpart of the Nation's gross domestic product (GDP), the Bureau's featured and most comprehensive measure of U.S. economic activity. GDP by metropolitan area is derived as the sum of the GDP originating in all the industries in the metropolitan area.

Current-dollar statistics are valued in the prices of the period when the transactions occurred–that is, at "market value." Also referred to as "nominal GDP" or "current-price GDP."

Real values are inflation-adjusted statistics–that is, these exclude the effects of price changes.

Contributions to growth are an industry's contribution to the state's overall percent change in real GDP. The contributions are additive and can be summed to the state's overall percent change.

Industry definition

Natural resources and mining. This industry is comprised of agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting and mining.

Statistical conventions

Quantities and prices. Quantities, or "real" measures, are expressed as index numbers with a specified reference year equal to 100 (currently 2009). Quantity indexes are calculated using a Fisher-chained weighted formula that incorporates weights from two adjacent periods (quarters for quarterly data and annuals for annual data). "Real" dollar series are calculated by multiplying the published quantity index by the current dollar value in the reference year (2009) and then dividing by 100. Percent changes calculated from chained-dollar levels and quantity indexes are conceptually the same; any differences are due to rounding.

Chained-dollar values are not additive because the relative weights for a given period differ from those of the reference year.

Chained-dollar values of GDP by metropolitan area are derived by applying national chain-type price indexes to the current dollar values of GDP by metropolitan area for the 61 detailed NAICS-based industries. The chain-type index formula that is used in the national accounts is then used to calculate the values of total real GDP by metropolitan area and real GDP by metropolitan area at more aggregated industry levels. Real GDP by metropolitan area may reflect a substantial volume of output that is sold to other areas and countries. To the extent that a metropolitan area's output is produced and sold in national markets at relatively uniform prices (or sold locally at national prices), real GDP by metropolitan area captures the differences across metropolitan areas that reflect the relative differences in the mix of goods and services that the areas produce. However, real GDP by metropolitan area does not capture geographic differences in the prices of goods and services that are produced and sold locally.

Relation of GDP by metropolitan area real growth rates to national GDP. The statistics of GDP by metropolitan area released today are consistent with statistics of GDP by state released May 11, 2017, which were based on the July 2016 annual update of the national income and product accounts and the November 2016 annual update of the annual industry economic accounts. The growth rate of real GDP in the nation's metropolitan areas differs from the nation's real GDP growth rates released in July 2016. In part, the difference is caused by the inclusion of nonmetropolitan areas in the national statistics. In addition, growth rates differ because of differences in the timing of production cycles and availability of data in preparing national and regional statistics, which currently preclude BEA from incorporating the immediately preceding July annual revisions of the NIPAs into the advance statistics of GDP by metropolitan area.

Metropolitan (statistical) areas. The metropolitan (statistical) areas used by BEA for its entire series of GDP statistics are the August 15, 2017 county-based definitions developed by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for federal statistical purposes. OMB's general concept of a metropolitan area is that of a geographic area consisting of a large population nucleus together with adjacent communities having a high degree of economic and social integration with the nucleus.

List of News Release Tables

Table 1. Current-Dollar Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by Metropolitan Area, 2012-2017

Table 2. Real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by Metropolitan Area, 2012-2017

Table 3. Contributions to Percent Change in Real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by Metropolitan Area, 2017