Economic Outlook

Economist Jerry Parrish expects a U.S. recession in 2023 but says that doesn't necessarily mean Florida will join in. If Florida does, he says, it will be shorter than the national recession and not as deep. Read more »

“Nationally in 2023, we expect the health care industry to grow faster than the overall economy, reflecting health care's continued expanding share of the nation's GDP. Interestingly, health care costs have not been growing as fast as other consumer staples such as food and gas. This is partially the result of health care prices being set in advance through federal and state programs and through contracting with private insurance payers. Health systems are under pressure through higher labor and supply costs. As a result of these cost pressures and other factors, expect to see additional health system consolidation across the state and nation.” Read more »

“Insurance is always front of mind for Florida owners and investors. Rising construction costs and pricing for properties has led to a dramatic increase in required total insurable value. Coupled with recent claims, this results in a difficult insurance market with little visibility for owners and buyers into future expected insurance premiums. Stability in this market will be crucial to keep transactions moving smoothly in Miami.” Read more »

“Most people don't realize the University of Florida has made two big plays in our county. The University of Florida is going to take 12 acres in the heart of downtown West Palm Beach for a graduate school in data analytics, cybersecurity, AI, aviation and aerospace. The second area the University of Florida has taken over is the Scripps Research Institute — to really build out that cluster the way we envisioned in 2004. Read more »

“North- Central Florida's thriving life sciences industry is home to numerous highly collaborative businesses that support, encourage and strengthen each other to drive innovation and positively impact the community. The region's proximity to the University of Florida and Santa Fe College provides a very strong talent pool that is essential to supporting growing businesses. RTI Surgical has a private-label OEM business model and partners with leading medical technology companies to address unmet needs in the tissue and biologics regenerative medical device markets.” Read more »

“For the most part, companies are hiring, but as they go into 2023, they are still hurting for people. I went to a conference recently, and I learned that in the health care field there is one nurse for every 10 open positions. In the hospitality industry, it is one person for every six job openings. It's getting better, but it's still very painful for many industries. So, a lot of companies are trying to fill the gap with automation, and inevitably everybody is going to have to go there out of desperation. Many companies have resisted doing that, but they have got to find a way to close the job gap and perhaps consider going down the artificial intelligence path. Perhaps using AI to search through resumes for keywords and things of that nature. We're a very personalized relationship-driven business, so we don't want to damage our interpersonal relationships by being too abstract or too distant or too techie, but we have had a really hard time, especially following COVID, finding quality people for quality jobs.” Read more »

“PostcardMania has encountered and overcome many challenges in the past, and I feel 2023 will be no different. Even amidst inflation, where we have had to adjust our pricing and some business dealings due to the cost of essential materials, we are still growing.” Read more »

The Florida Chamber Foundation has been charting Florida's rise in the global economy in its ambitious 2030 Blueprint, which aims to position the state – now the equivalent of the world's 16th largest economy, ahead of Saudi Arabia and behind the Netherlands – at 10th. Read more »

Industries across the state are reporting robust activity — some are surpassing pre-pandemic levels of growth. Read the full regional reports - Miami • Southeast • Southwest • Central •... Read more »

“In general, hotels in urban centers are not coming back anytime soon. Everybody is looking at 2024 for some kind of sustained recovery..." Read more »

Tourism in Clay County turned upside down in 2021, Morgan says. Traditionally, hotels in Clay County have been busy during the week, drawing people doing business with Naval Air Station Jacksonville or the Cecil Commerce Center. “And then COVID happened,” Morgan says. “Now, the weekends are very, very strong.” Read more »

“We have every confidence in Florida's role as the leading global enabler of a new space economy and aerospace industry. In 2022, we will continue to invest in new infrastructure throughout Florida's spaceport system, including the capability statewide to handle 100 launches a year and accommodate launch-on-demand and satellite-on-demand capacity..." Read more »

"Since January 2021, natural gas prices have more than doubled after a number of unique events drove up the price and drove down supplies..." Read more »

“I see a few storms on the horizon. The amount we're paying for labor is escalating at an exponential rate. You have the supply chain issues. We used to try to squeeze every nickel out of the supply chain. Now, it's not about the money..." Read more »

The Economic Outlook package also includes people to watch in each region and news from all of Florida's 67 counties. Read more »

Regional business leaders talk about the outlook for the year ahead, plus demographics and statistics Read more »

Regional business leaders talk about the outlook for the year ahead, plus demographics and statistics Read more »

Regional business leaders talk about the outlook for the year ahead, plus demographics and statistics Read more »

Regional business leaders talk about the outlook for the year ahead, plus demographics and statistics Read more »

Perspectives on the year ahead from business leaders in each of Florida's major regions, along with key growth-related statistics and a roundup of issues and news. Read more »

Says Mark Wiese, Manager NASA's Gateway Logistics Element, Kennedy Space Center, about the lunar focus: "Our whole Artemis campaign is to return to the moon, this time to stay..." Read more »

Says Garrett Richter, President / CEO First Florida Integrity Bank, Naples: “Our outlook at First Florida Integrity Bank in 2020 is positive Read more »

Broward County will shut the Broward Convention Center for 19 months to pull off a $1-billion renovation and expansion. Read more »

The residential condo market surprised many people during 2019, with prices holding steady even as more units were delivered, says Ken Krasnow. Read more »

Perspectives on the year ahead from business leaders in each of Florida's major regions, along with key growth-related statistics and a roundup of issues and news. Read more »