Texas has nations top job growth in May

Dallas Morning News:

Texas employers added more jobs than any other state in May, and if that pace continues, economists say this year could be a record-setting one for the state.

Texas saw an increase of 56,400 jobs in May after adding 62,400 in April, the biggest monthly gains in four years, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The April figure was revised down from an initial 64,100.

The state jobless rate dipped from 5.2 percent in April to 5.1 percent — well below the U.S. rate of 6.3 percent last month.

Texas and the nation have seen stronger job growth for the last few months. That trend, combined with other improving statistics, such as consumer confidence and industrial production, show a strengthening economy and a rebound from a hiring slowdown caused by bad weather at the start of the year.

“I was pretty shocked at how big the number was again,” Boyd Nash-Stacey, an economist for BBVA Compass bank, said about the job growth. Texas’ recent job gains are three times the average monthly job-creation rate over the last 15 years, he calculated.

“Texas is on pace to create the second-most jobs nationally of all time — about 500,000 — which to me is unbelievable that we’ve seen numbers this strong in the recovery,” Nash-Stacey said. “California created about 600,000 jobs in 1978.”
...

The oil and gas boom is still underway and new prospects are coming on line in West Texas.  The energy boom is having a ripple effect in the construction and housing markets.  As more businesses relocate to Texas it will provide a broader base.