Orange County will finish this year with about 26,500 more jobs, and add another 33,600 next year, according to economists at California State University, Fullerton’s Mihaylo College of Business and Economics.
This year’s increase will come to roughly 2% on OC’s base of about 1.4 million jobs. Next year’s projection represents a gain of about 2.4%.
Expectations for 2013 include a drop in the countywide unemployment rate to 7.3% from an estimated rate of 7.9% this year.
The local outlook for 2013 falls about in line with that for the Southern California region—defined as Orange, Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino, Imperial and Ventura counties by the Mihaylo School’s annual economic outlook and forecast report. The region is expected to add 124,000 jobs for a 1.9% increase.
There is “an emerging economic recovery … evident throughout Orange County and the Southern California region,” according to Anil Puri, dean of the business school and co-author of the forecast report.
“Employment growth, once the economy picks up, will come primarily from the traditional sectors of Orange County such as high-tech manufacturing, construction, business services and leisure related industries,” according to the report, co-authored by Mira Farka, an assistant professor and co-director of the Institute for Economic and Environmental Studies at the Mihaylo School.
More than a third of the expected job gains in 2013 will come from the professional and business services sector, which will gain about 11,700 jobs next year.
Leisure and hospitality will gain about 4,800 jobs, and manufacturing about 3,900.
Construction also will see an increase in the number of jobs, by about 2,900.
Puri expects government to shed about 1,300 jobs.
—Jane Yu
