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Year in review: Charleston area bouncing back from recession; jobless rate high

01.01.70

The good news is that the Charleston area has bounced back faster than many areas of the country, as SunTrust Bank chief economist Gregory Miller pointed out earlier this month.

Miller noted that of the 53 metro areas he tracks for Atlanta-based SunTrust, the Charleston region is one of just two where 12 of 14 key indicators are moving in the right direction. He was especially upbeat about the steady growth of the local labor force, which likely means that smart, mobile workers are relocating to the area.

"This is a good thing," Miller said.

Also, home sales are showing signs of a rebound, though real estate values clearly are not.

Perhaps the biggest challenge: Despite some major job announcements in 2011, South Carolina has struggled more than most states when it comes to getting people back to work quickly. The unemployment rate in 2011 remained stubbornly high: It dipped below 10 percent only in the spring and in November.

The Charleston region, thankfully, outperformed the state as a whole, generally tracking a couple of percentage points lower.

Source: Charleston Post Courier