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New Report Suggests Slow Climb to Economic Growth in Virginia Following Recession

stateofthecommonwealth.com

Since the Great Recession brought the state’s unemployment rate to a 20-year high, Virginia’s economy has been improving… but slowly. That’s according to a new economic report from Old Dominion University. 

Dr. Larry Filer is with Old Dominion University’s Center for Economic Analysis and Policy. Speaking today at an event for the Roanoke Chamber of Commerce, he says Virginia’s economic growth is being outpaced by other states.

“There’s no other way to say it; since the end of the recession we’re kind of being left behind. The U.S. economy and other state economies that we typically compete with are sort of outpacing us and moving forward.”

Filer's report cites a slowdown in federal government spending, which accounts for nearly a third of the state’s economic activity. The issue spreads to some of Virginia’s largest cities, including Roanoke -- where the economy has still not recovered fully since 2009. 

The report’s authors, though, predict an upward trend for the rest of the year. They estimate a nearly 2 percent increase in GDP across the state.

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