University of Arizona research indicates the state’s economy has seen substantial recovery toward its pre-pandemic peak last February, but certain areas are still struggling.
Professor George Hammond of the university’s Eller Economic Business and Research Center reports that Arizona has outpaced the nation as a whole by replacing over two-thirds of the 294,000 jobs lost from February to April.
According to the research, leisure and hospitality jobs remain the hardest hit while there were strong gains in trade, transportation and utilities.
The caveat to this job growth comes in its uneven distribution across metropolitan areas in the state. Hammond says the Phoenix area is “completely responsible for the state’s job growth since June,” while the other metropolitan areas have generated little or no job growth.
