New York City's economy continued solid growth in 2014, outpacing the nation on many fronts despite a slowdown in the fourth quarter, Comptroller Scott Stringer said Feb. 12 in his quarterly update.
"While our economy lost momentum late in the year, most indicators are trending in the right direction for New York City," said Stringer. "Job growth has been robust, unemployment is down and personal income tax revenues are at the highest level on record. In 2015, we expect to see continued progress in restoring all of the city's communities to economic health."
According to Stringer, 2014 was one of the best job-producing years for the city on record, with 88,900, or 2.6%, private-sector jobs added, but in the fourth quarter, those jobs dropped slightly on a seasonally adjusted basis.
Real gross city product, a measure of the city's total economic output, grew at an estimated 2.8% percent annual rate in the fourth quarter, which Stringer called a healthy but still weaker pace than the 4.2% registered in the previous quarter. Consumer spending, powered by rising employment and lower gasoline and heating prices, continued to drive economic growth.
"The economic recovery continued to build in 2014 for New York City; a slower final quarter should be viewed in that context," Stringer said. "As we head into 2015, we will continue to watch whether some of the wage gains we saw this past year will raise the paychecks of working New Yorkers."
