La. Economy Grows Only 1.6% In Third Quarter

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - New figures show Louisiana's economy growing at a 1.6 percent annual rate from July through September, continuing to lag the nation's expansion.

Gross domestic product numbers released Thursday by the federal Bureau of Economic Analysis try to measure all of the economic output of each state.

Louisiana's performance slowed from 2015's second quarter, when the economy grew 3.6 percent. It improved from 2014's third quarter, when output shrank at a 0.8 percent rate.

The state's economy grew 1.5 percent during all of 2014.

Output in the quarter was buoyed by a big increase in non-durable goods manufacturing, which includes petrochemical refining, offsetting weakness in oil and gas mining.

Nationwide, economic output rose 1.9 percent during 2015's third quarter. Louisiana, with a $253 billion-plus economy, ranked 37th for growth among states.

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