NCAA First Four in Dayton Expected to Make Positive Economic Impact

• U.S.: U.S. manufacturing showed signs of strength to start 2022 and U.S. GDP was revised upward to a 7% annualized growth rate in Q4 2021.  With conflict in Ukraine, oil is trading near $100/barrel and American gasoline prices have risen about a penny a gallon every day over the last week.
• Ohio: Ohio remains among the best states for opportunity – directly benefiting from the population migration from the coasts to central states and ranking as the #5 least expensive state to live in 2022. NCAA First Four, Big Hoopla expected to make positive economic impact.

Despite inflationary pressures, U.S. manufacturing and consumer spending showed signs of strength to start 2022.  Business inventories increased strongly in December, rising 2.1% from the previous month. Industrial production rose 1.4% in January following a slight decline in December.  Capacity utilization rose to 77.6% in January from 76.6% in December.  However, The Conference Board Leading Economic Index (LEI) fell in January for the first time in nearly a year. The LEI decreased 0.3% to 119.6 in January, driven by the omicron wave, rising prices and supply-chain disruptions.

U.S. GDP was revised upward to a 7% annualized growth rate in Q4 2021.  The full-year growth rate for 2021 was 5.7% following the revision, the fastest since 1984. Despite the outlook from consumers, the U.S. economy rebounded further in February.  The IHS Markit Composite Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) rose to 56.0 during the month, up from 51.1 in January.  Core PCE, the Federal Reserve’s primary inflation gauge, rose 5.2% in January from a year prior to the highest level since 1983.

Ohio remains among the best states for opportunity as evidenced by a variety of new positive data points.  Ohio is directly benefitting from the population migration from the east and west coasts to central states, according to a new report from Heartland Forward. The study notes that from 2010 to 2019, a dozen metro areas in Ohio grew their educated workforce and creative class.  A total of 28 Ohio-Based companies were ranked among the best 500 large employers in the U.S. according to Forbes “America’s Best Large Employers 2022”.  A report from Dwellics ranked 9 Ohio cities among the top 10 best cities to raise a family in the Midwest. Ohio touts thirty of the top forty cities in the report, which analyzed over 10,000 Midwestern cities on key factors including quality of education, community, climate comfort, infrastructure, safety, and finances. Ohio ranked as the #5 least expensive state to live in 2022 in a recent study conducted by Credit Karma. The study analyzed all 50 states across 11 different relevant factors, including various cost of living indices for everyday expenditures like transportation, groceries, and healthcare, to larger, monthly, and annual expenditures like monthly rent, mortgage payments, property, and sales taxes. A recent study from GoodHire ranked Cincinnati #20 and Columbus #24 out of 155 large U.S. metros as the most affordable places to live and work in the U.S. in 2022.

Changes are being implemented that will make Ohio a better place to start a business, further positioning Ohio as one of the most business-friendly states in the nation.  LLC modernization rules through the Revised Limited Liability Company Act, SB 276, took effect on February 11.  Changes include implementing flexibility for structuring LLCs, allowing a single LLC to establish one or more “series” of assets, and providing clarity and predictability for Ohioans looking to start and grow their limited liability company.

• Acciona received approval from the Ohio Power Siting Board to build a $320M, 325-megawatt, solar project in the Central Ohio townships of Washington and York, which will create nearly 300 jobs while being constructed.
• Cleveland Clinic will invest $70M in its Mercy Hospital in Canton. The investment will be used for infrastructure, including IT improvements.
• OhioHealth Grant Cancer Center in downtown Columbus will undergo a $23M expansion. The 26,500 SF expansion will bring a new infusion clinic, a hematology and oncology clinic and an updated pharmacy and lab.
• Charter Communications announced that more than 900 homes and small businesses in Guernsey County will be eligible for Spectrum internet services as part of the company’s $5B investment into underserved rural communities.
• ProAmpac completed their first acquisition of 2022, following eight acquisitions in 2021. The company, headquartered in Springdale, has acquired Canada-based Belle-Pak for an undisclosed amount.
• DHL Express is adding a new route from Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, which will increase its ability to serve a country with key manufacturing hubs.
• FlexEnergy acquired a patent license agreement from the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, Materials & Manufacturing Directorate, enabling the company to develop flexible batteries for smart clothing.
• Cincinnati’s Minority Business Accelerator received a $300,000 grant from the PNC Foundation that will help it expand entrepreneurial opportunities for emerging minority-owned businesses in the region, specifically in the areas of economic empowerment and entrepreneurship.
• Viking Luxury Cruises selected Cleveland as one of 10 stops on a new route, called the Great Lakes Collection. The 15-day cruise will visit all 5 Great Lakes, starting in Toronto and ending in Duluth, beginning in 2023.
• GE Aviation and Safran Aircraft Engines, members of a 50/50 joint venture called CFM International, were selected by Airbus to develop and test an aircraft engine powered by hydrogen.
• Jada-Sterling acquired a 200,000 SF building in Sterling Heights, through a joint venture with Industrial Commercial Properties. The company will consolidate several locations and move its corporate HQ to the new location.
• Wright State University will begin offering an accelerated nursing program starting this fall, allowing students to start their careers more quickly and help combat the critical staffing problems faced by area hospitals.

Resources

• Ohio Department of Health’s COVID-19 Website: www.coronavirus.ohio.gov

• JobsOhio’s information about Open, Secure Supply Chains in Ohio