Authors: Jason Bram, James Orr, and Rae Rosen

The 2007 slowing in job growth in the New York–New Jersey region continued through August 2008. A projected weakening in the national economy through the end of 2008 combined with the market turmoil affecting New York City’s finance sector suggests that the region will post substantially smaller job gains this year than it did in 2007. Beyond 2008, continued financial stress could lead to an even sharper and more protracted contraction in the city’s finance sector, potentially spreading to other sectors of the region’s economy.