Moderate job growth is a good thing. The county’s job growth ended the first quarter of 2014 with moderate 3-percent year-to-year job growth. With 100 net new jobs, Millard County’s economy expanded nicely over the past 12 months. Strongest employment gains occurred in the information, transportation, manufacturing and health/care social services industries along with the public sector. In other words, growth proved relatively broad-based, which is a positive sign for future growth. The only significant industry-level job loss occurred in retail trade.
Strong employment expansion continued to erode the county’s unemployment rate. With a July 2014 jobless rate of 3.2 percent, Millard County sports one of the lowest unemployment shares in the state.
Sales and construction permitting evidenced a split economic personality. A robust 36-percent gain in 2013 construction permit values was softened by a negligible increase in year-to-year first quarter gross taxable sales.
