Dallas Fed: Texas added 13,200 jobs in September; state employment forecast unchanged at 1.0 percent
For immediate release: October 16, 2015
DALLAS—Texas added 13,200 jobs in September, according to seasonally adjusted and benchmarked payroll employment numbers released today by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.
The state added a revised 1,100 jobs in August. Through September, jobs have grown at an annualized pace of 1.2 percent after growing 3.6 percent in 2014.
Incorporating September’s employment data, the Texas employment forecast stands at 1.0 percent, suggesting 122,700 jobs will be added in Texas this year. The forecast remained unchanged from August.
“The modest job growth in September resulted in no net change to the forecast,” said Keith Phillips, Dallas Fed assistant vice president and senior economist. “The decline in oil prices and rise in the value of the dollar continue to suppress job growth in the state, while sectors such as health care and leisure and hospitality remain strong.”
Unemployment rates rose in eight of nine major Texas metro areas in September, according to seasonally adjusted numbers from the Dallas Fed. The unemployment rate in the Dallas–Plano–Irving metro area remained unchanged at 3.7 percent.
The Dallas Fed improves the Bureau of Labor Statistics' (BLS) payroll employment estimates for Texas by incorporating preliminary benchmarks into the data in a more timely manner and by using a two-step seasonal adjustment technique. Texas metropolitan area unemployment rates from the BLS also are seasonally adjusted by the Dallas Fed.
The Dallas Fed also offers seasonally adjusted employment data by industry at the state and metro levels for Texas.
The Dallas Fed releases its Texas employment forecast on a monthly basis in conjunction with the release of monthly Texas employment data. The forecast projects job growth for the calendar year and is estimated as the 12-month change in payroll employment from December to December.
For information on the methodology for the Bank’s Texas employment forecast, visit the Dallas Fed’s website.
Next Release Date: November 20
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Media contact:
Alexander Johnson
Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas
Phone: (214) 922-5288
Email: alexander.johnson@dal.frb.org