If Florida 麻豆精品 S檚 economic recovery was a romantic comedy, it could be called 麻豆精品 S淗ow Florida Got Her Groove Back, 麻豆精品 S� according to University of Central Florida economist Sean Snaith.

In his 2nd Quarter Florida Economic Forecast, Snaith notes that after enduring a recession that was longer and deeper than the national economy 麻豆精品 S檚, Florida has surpassed the national pace of job creation and overall economic growth.

麻豆精品 S淲e are a nation that reveres the underdog and adores a good comeback story. Florida 麻豆精品 S檚 economic turnaround fits right into that ethos, 麻豆精品 S� he said.

The housing-market crash and surge in unemployment left Florida in financial ruin as the national economy took a dive. But by 2013, Florida 麻豆精品 S檚 economy regained its glow.

Baby Boomers who delayed their retirement plans due to the housing and financial crises are retiring again, and Florida 麻豆精品 S檚 housing market is enjoying years of double-digit price appreciation.

Even the weather contributed to Florida 麻豆精品 S檚 economic boost.

麻豆精品 S淭he bitter cold of polar vertices that descended upon the northern U.S. this winter helped provide an unanticipated boost in tourism, 麻豆精品 S� said Snaith. 麻豆精品 S淭he lure of sunshine and warm temperatures bolstered visitation in the first quarter of 2014. 麻豆精品 S�

Snaith 麻豆精品 S檚 forecast this quarter offers long run predictions through 2044 for Florida and its 12 metropolitan regions. Those areas are Daytona Beach-Deltona-Ormond Beach, Gainesville, Jacksonville, Lakeland, Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Miami Beach, Naples-Marco Island, Ocala, Orlando-Kissimmee, Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Brent, Tallahassee and Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater.

Highlights include:

  • During the next three years, it is predicted that Florida 麻豆精品 S檚 economy will expand at an average annual rate of 3.7 percent and payroll job creation will average an annual pace of 2.6 percent. Both measures are well above the pace expected for the national economy.
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  • The growing labor force and rising labor-force participation rate will make the lowering of Florida 麻豆精品 S檚 unemployment rate more challenging. The pace of decline will slow dramatically and could reverse direction as labor force growth picks up. Despite this headwind, the unemployment rate should fall to 5.6 percent by the end of 2017.
  • The sectors expected to have the strongest average job growth during 2014-2017 are construction, professional and business services, trade, transportation and utilities, education and health services, and leisure and hospitality.
  • Retail sales will grow at an average pace of 4.9 percent during 2014-2017.

Snaith is a national expert in economics, forecasting, market sizing and economic analysis who authors quarterly reports about the state of the economy. Bloomberg News has named Snaith as one of the country 麻豆精品 S檚 most accurate forecasters for his predictions about the Federal Reserve 麻豆精品 S檚 benchmark interest rate, the Federal Funds rate.

Snaith also is a member of several national forecasting panels, including The Wall Street Journal Economic Forecasting Survey, CNNMoney.com 麻豆精品 S檚 survey of leading economists, the Associated Press Economy Survey, the National Association of Business Economics Quarterly Outlook Survey Panel, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia 麻豆精品 S檚 Survey of Professional Forecasters, the Livingston Survey, Bloomberg U.S. Economic Indicator Survey, Reuters U.S. Economy Survey, and USA Today Economic Survey Panel.

The strives to provide complete, accurate and timely national, state and regional forecasts and economic analyses. Through these analyses, the institute provides valuable resources to the public and private sectors for informed decision-making.