The Anchorage Economic Development Corporation (AEDC) hosted its first in-person event in two years on Tuesday. The Annual Economic Forecast Luncheon was held at the Dena’ina and felt like a return to normalcy with business leaders gathered to hear about updates to the Anchorage economy.
Mayor Dave Bronson opened the luncheon with a presentation that Anchorage was open for business and a description of his top two priorities while in office. The first is to modernize the port and the second to fix homelessness in Anchorage. The Mayor noted that there is a plan for the port but they are working to secure funding to be able to move forward. He also noted that it is looking to be a good year for the Municipality due to the anticipated increase in tourism this summer.
AEDC’s President & CEO Bill Popp took over at the podium to present his annual economic forecast for the coming year. There were a number of reports shared during the presentation. All are available at AEDC’s website. A recap of the 2021 jobs situation in Anchorage was first up. The Real-Time Jobs Intelligence Report showed what Anchorage’s job market looked like in 2021.
The Cost of Living Index report was next and is sponsored by Northrim Bank. The report showed that Anchorage is the 21st most expensive city of the 267 cities that participated in the 2021 survey. The Anchorage Consumer Optimism Index and the Business Confidence Index reports painted an interesting picture of how individual consumers and business leaders felt about the current economy and the future. While consumers are unsure overall about the local economy, they are confident in their personal finances, but unsure about future expectations. On the business side of things, indices improved in each category of the survey and resulted in the second highest composite score of the past decade.
The presentation concluded with the overall 2022 Economic Forecast presentation, sponsored by Northrim Bank. AEDC is hopeful that 2022 will be a growth year but notes that jobs will likely remain below pre-pandemic levels. Recovery depends on how quickly COVID eases its grip on the economy and will depend on the availability of a labor force for the many open positions in Anchorage.
Overall, AEDC is hopeful that we will see job growth and a more stable economy, but notes that there are external variables that are outside of our control that will ultimately determine what kind of year we will have in 2022.
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