El Paso Economic Indicators

El Paso job growth picked up in July, and the unemployment rate fell. Housing permits ticked up, and trade volumes grew slightly. Maquiladora output in Mexico fell.

Labor market

Job growth increases

El Paso employment grew an annualized 3.9 percent (1,099 jobs) in July (Chart 1). The largest gains were in government (1,381 jobs) and information (83 jobs). Job losses were greatest in professional and business services (-253 jobs) and manufacturing (-183 jobs).  

So far in 2024, total nonfarm employment expanded an annualized 1.3 percent (2,556 jobs). Government added the most jobs on net (2,506 jobs), followed by leisure and hospitality (763 jobs) and trade, transportation and utilities (460 jobs). The professional and business services sector contracted the most (-1,572 jobs) followed by manufacturing (-283 jobs). El Paso’s job growth year to date in 2024 was below the state’s 1.7 percent and the nation’s 1.6 percent.

Unemployment rate ticks down

El Paso’s unemployment rate moved down slightly to 4.3 percent in July (Chart 2). This was on par with the nation but higher than the state’s rate of 4.1 percent.

Housing permits

New single-family permits for El Paso, after trending down in 2024, registered a 1.1 percent increase in June. However, the number was down 11.2 percent year over year. Meanwhile, Texas single-family housing permits decreased 1.6 percent in June but were still up 6.6 percent year over year.  

Trade volumes

El Paso’s economy is heavily dependent on international trade. In June, El Paso’s trade volume totaled $151.7 billion annualized, up 15.2 percent from June 2023 (Chart 4). Exports grew 15.8 percent year over year, while imports grew 14.9 percent year over year. Trade primarily flowed through the ports of Ysleta (61 percent), Santa Teresa (20 percent) and El Paso (19 percent).

Manufacturing and maquiladora activity

The El Paso area economy is the nexus of many cross-border manufacturing relationships with maquiladoras in Mexico. In May, maquiladora output continued to fall, declining 2.4 percent year over year. At the same time, in May, the U.S. manufacturing index fell 0.2 percent year over year.