Resilient Retail/In Good Times And Bad, The Retail Sector Remains Vital Component Of U. S. Economy

摘要

These are indeed trying times. For every bit of good news, there seems just as quickly to be some bad. The nation's employment figures are a good example. On September 2, the labor department announced the rate of unemployment had dipped to 4.9 percent, the lowest since September 11, 2001. Unfortunately, the news came as one of the worst natural disasters in the history of this country was unfolding live on television. Short-term job losses as a result of the killer storm are estimated to be at least 400,000. Yet the long-term impact on our economy remains to be seen. But if the terror attacks of four years ago have taught us anything, it is that America is resilient and progress can be slowed but never really stopped. Evidence of that can be seen in the construction industry. Just four short years after the horror of September 11, amid rising costs for energy and raw materials, we find ourselves in relatively good shape. Home building remains at historically high levels and sectors of non-residential construction border on robust.