Economic experts say long-term view of Vegas is optimistic
The NAIOP October meeting was entitled, the “Economy in Motion: Shaping What’s Next for Southern Nevada.” Other panelists included Steve Hill, CEO and president of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority; and Andrew Woods, director of the Center for Business and Economic Research at UNLV. Jamie Schwartz, UNLV Research Foundation director of business and industry engagement moderated the panel.
“We are cautiously stable right now in the economy,” Woods said after returning from a conference in Philadelphia where Federal Reserve Chair Jay Powell spoke to economists. “It’s very clear we’re the two-handed economists. There’s data out there’s still a lot of growth and opportunity but there’s a lot of warning lights out there going on like our labor market and inflation.
“There are three forces that are going to drive Southern Nevada and its economy in the coming years — some good and some bad,” Woods said. “The first one is population growth. We are forecasting an additional 387,000 more people living here in the next 10 years. That’s nine more net residents by the end of this breakfast. That’s good.”