San Antonio poised for economic growth

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San Antonio poised for economic growth, report shows
San Antonio Business Journal - 5:14 PM CST Friday



The San Antonio area is on the verge of significant economic expansion -- one that will last over the next five years, according to a report released Friday by the Perryman Group.

The metropolitan area's real gross product is projected to experience a compound annual growth rate of 4.17 percent. It is expected to rise from $62.07 billion in 2006 to $76.15 billion in 2011.


Population is also projected to rise from 1.93 million in 2006 to 2.12 million by 2011 for a compound annual growth rate of 1.83 percent. Employment is expected to increase from 879,400 to 963,100 at a growth rate of 1.84 percent.

Household income is expected to rise from $53.98 billion to $66.75 billion for a growth rate of 4.34 percent. Retail sales are also expected to rise from $30.26 billion to $42.68 billion for a growth rate of 7.12 percent.

The San Antonio Metropolitan Statistical Area consists of Atascosa, Bandera, Bexar, Comal, Guadalupe, Kendall, Medina and Wilson counties.

Economist Ray Perryman released the findings at a meeting sponsored by the North San Antonio Chamber of Commerce.

The Perryman report indicates that the services; finance, insurance and real estate; trade; and government industries already generate nearly three-quarters of the San Antonio area's real gross product. This trend is expected to continue in the near future.

Of the $14.08 billion gain in real gross product projected for the area, the services industries will account for about $3.79 billion.

However, over the next five years, several sectors in the region will achieve compound annual growth rates in excess of 4 percent.

These include durable manufacturing; information; finance, insurance and real estate; trade; nondurable manufacturing; services; transportation, warehousing and utilities; and mining.

Of the jobs in San Antonio, about 350,650 wage and salary jobs are in the services sector, which represents about 39.88 percent of the area's total employment. The second highest employer is the government sector with about 182,110 workers.

Over the next year alone, the services sector will add 8,100 jobs, which represents a growth of 2.32 percent. For the entire five-year period, the services sector will add another 41,500 new jobs.