Dallas Business Journal – Texas ranked eighth in the nation for gross domestic product growth from 2012 to 2013, according U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis.
Oil and gas contributed significantly to the state’s GDP numbers, which grew 3.7 percent between the two years. However, other industries, including electronics, Texas’ number two product category, also continued to see growth.
“A lot of that is due to innovation occurring with companies relocating here,” said Ed Curtis, CEO of YTexas, a company that helps executives form partnerships around the state. “And we’re actually making things in Texas. I think that will be best for long-term sustainability, because that fills a lot of the lower and middle income jobs we’ll need to grow.”
Texas’ electronics sector is also good news for market diversity. If oil and gas prices bust, as they have in the past, the state will still have other sectors creating revenue. This stands in stark contrast to states like North Dakota. While it took first for GDP growth, its numbers were based almost solely on oil, gas and energy, making its numbers vulnerable to hits in those industries.
“The oil and gas sector is obviously a big contributor, but we’ve had a lot of other industries that have had job growth,” Curtis said. “We were reliant on oil and gas in our numbers, too, but there was a large percentage in other sectors.”
Texas’ growth percentage is more than double the GDP growth for the nation, which stood at 1.8 percent. Curtis said he expects the state’s export growth to continue.
“I think what we’re going to see with migration here of not only companies but people,” he said. “I think for the size of the Texas economy, to continue above the national rate is amazing. And we continue to grow.”
Top 10 states for GDP growth 2012 to 2013
- North Dakota – 9.7 percent
- Wyoming – 7.6 percent
- West Virginia – 5.1 percent
- Oklahoma – 4.2 percent
- Idaho – 4.1 percent
- Colorado – 3.8 percent
- Utah – 3.8 percent
- Texas – 3.7 percent
- South Dakota – 3.1 percent
- Nebraska – 3 percent
