Wednesday, April 2, 2008

Personal income in Idaho stays strong

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By EXPRESS STAFF
Express Staff Writer

The final quarter of 2007, comprised of the last three months of the year, saw an increase of 1.3 percent in personal income over the previous quarter in Idaho, according to the state's Department of Labor.

Despite declines in construction and manufacturing during this period, high commodity prices and strength in professional services kept personal income growth strong in a slowing national economy.

This growth, although half the rate over the same period in 2006, was still a third of a percentage point above the national average and ranked fourth nationally.

Personal income, the total of all wages, business profits, investment earnings and transfer payments such as Social Security, rose to $46.8 billion in Idaho for all of 2007, 6.8 percent higher than in 2006, while per capita income was estimated at $31,200, 81 percent of the national average.