State ranks fifth in tech job growth

[OKC_Shane]

Thought this was a good, positive article- for some reason we end up at the bottom of lists than at the top most of the time...

Speaking of aerospace, Boeing has begun investing in Oklahoma City near Tinker AFB... It is rumored that they could be interested in the GM building or building a new facility because of increasing demand for airplanes worldwide...

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State ranks fifth in tech jobs
By Don Mecoy
The Oklahoman

Oklahoma ranked fifth in the nation last year in high-tech job growth, largely because of expansion in the commercial aircraft and transportation equipment business, according to an economic profile released Thursday by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

Tulsa's aerospace cluster has provided much of the boost "and represents a bright spot for the Oklahoma economy," the report said... (more at http://newsok.com/article/1906601/)

THUMBS UP
Oklahoma's booming aerospace industry, particularly in Tulsa, drove the state's high-tech job growth to fifth in the nation last year. Demand for commercial aircraft and transportation equipment boosted Oklahoma exports by one-third.

Per-capita income among Oklahoma residents rose more quickly than the nation in 2005, again because of new high-tech jobs that pay an average of 55 percent more than other private-sector jobs.

Oklahoma's banks and thrifts reported strong earnings the first three months of 2006.


THUMBS DOWN

Forecasters expect the drought that devastated the state's wheat crop to worsen through the summer. Small banks based in the hardest-hit areas that carry a heavy agricultural loan portfolio could suffer.

Consumer loans make up a larger part of loan portfolios at Oklahoma banks than in any state. Unfortunately, the state has the second-highest past-due rate on those loans.

Oklahoma has among the nation's highest rates of mortgage foreclosures and past-due mortgage payments.