Minnesota’s economic news, w/e 4/6/17
Minimum wage
MPR News: Local control v. statewide standard — battle over preemption continues
Taxes
InForum: Letter: Recent legislation has been tough on businesses in Minn. border cities
Mesabi Daily News: State, local chambers pushing legislature for tax reform
Economic development
Owatonna People’s Press: Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation seeking applications for FEAST! Smart Start Grants
Duluth News Tribune: Q&A with Neel Kashkari, president of the Minneapolis Fed
Minn Post: The Bemidji State bump: How one small-town university buoys the local economy
Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal: Minnesota’s Top 75 Public Companies: The bigger the better
Trade
Star Tribune: State farmers would have much to lose in a U.S.-China trade war
Star Tribune: Minnesota companies aren’t panicking about potential fallout from tariffs battle
WDAY6: Trade war with China may have impact on local economy
KTTC: Possible trade war hits rural Minnesota
Janesville Argus: Short takes: State ag chairs talk tariffs
Star Tribune: Minnesota has millions at stake as China targets soybeans
WCCO: Soy Bean Farmers Decry Trump’s ‘Trade War’ With China
KEYC: Potential Chinese Tariffs Already Impacting Minnesota Farmers
Labor market
Wahepton Daily News: MN job rate shows tight labor market
Hutchinson Leader: State sees growth in low-, high-wage jobs
Star Tribune: Twin Cities tech employment grew 1.6 percent last year, but many jobs go unfilled
Hutchinson Leader: Unemployment rate falls statewide and in McLeod, Meeker counties
Minn Post: Hiring crisis: While economy grows, wages for social service professionals aren’t keeping up
Economic growth
MPR News: Report: Midwest business conditions index rose again
Rochester Post Bulletin: Midwest economy: March state-by-state glance
Star Tribune: Midwest manufacturing expands for 16th straight month in March
WDIO: Minneapolis Federal Reserve President: Northland Economy “Doing Well”
Agriculture
Rochester Post Bulletin: Farming is the backbone of regional economy
John Phelan is an economist at Center of the American Experiment.