Ports are essential economic engines in communities across Washington- core functions like trade, tourism, infrastructure-building, and recreation mean ports matter to the wider state economy. It’s also no secret that the current pandemic-painted economic picture is dark. That’s why we asked Steve Lerch, Ph.D., Executive Director and Chief Economist of the Economic and Revenue Forecast Council to come address the most recent economic forecast with a ports-focus.
His presentation at today’s Roundtable centered on the larger economic situation across Washington, with a deeper dive into employment numbers, airport passenger traffic, the value of Washington exports, and tax collections—issues that matter to many ports across the state.
In today’s conversation:
· The lone bright spot in the economic forecast
· The effect of oil prices on Washington’s economy
· When we can expect the downtown to turn around
Do you need more resources on economic recovery, legal and compliance, internal port operations or health and safety related to the COVID-19 crisis? You can find today’s presentation, along with all previous presentations and information from Tuesday Roundtable speakers, on our COVID-19 response page for ports: https://www.washingtonports.org/covid19
You can listen to the whole meeting here:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/r9jaa3mxu3of78v/2020-07-07_recording.mp4?dl=0
Do you have ideas for future topics we could cover in our Tuesday Roundtables? Email your ideas to Washington.ports@washingtonports.org
