September 23, 2015
- Real GDP increased in 282 of the nation’s 381 metropolitan areas in 2014, led by widespread growth in professional and business services; finance, insurance, real estate, rental, and leasing; and trade. Natural resources and mining also spurred strong localized growth in several metropolitan areas.
- Professional and business services and finance, insurance, real estate, rental, and leasing contributed more than 50 percent to real GDP growth in 49 and 39 metropolitan areas, respectively.
- Profession and business services contributed to growth in 314 of the nation’s 381 metropolitan areas in 2014, most notably in Midland, MI (4.56 percentage points) and San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA (2.05 percentage points).
- Mining in the Permian Basin and Cline formation led to notable total real GDP growth for Midland, TX (24.1 percentage points) and San Angelo, TX (11.4 percentage points). Mining in the Marcellus shale formation contributed significantly to the 9.5 percent increase in total real GDP for Wheeling, WV-OH.
- In 2014, Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX was the fastest growing metropolitan area (8.5 percent) among economies with populations of 500,000 or more. Midland, TX grew the fastest (24.1 percent) of the metro areas with populations of less than 500,000.
For more information, read the full report.