NC Economy

North Carolina Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Forest ended a testy legal battle with campaign rival and Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper on Wednesday after a judge recently rejected Forest's demand to block Cooper from shuttering businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic.

North Carolina's jobless rate declined dramatically in June, the state announced on Friday, as restaurants, hotels and retailers bounced back since Gov. Roy Cooper's COVID-19 restrictions were eased.

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said on Monday he'll announce early next week whether businesses still shuttered because of COVID-19 will be allowed to reopen.

A Friday morning meeting of the state's popularly elected department heads had a partisan edge to it as members of the Council of State's GOP majority questioned Democratic Governor Roy Cooper and Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mandy Cohen on their plan for easing coronavirus-related public health restrictions.

"I lost seven contracts in three weeks. My current employment situation is dire."

"It just seems like the whole system was set-up to fail us."

North Carolina corporate and economic leaders predict jobs and company profits will continue to see steady, diverse growth in 2018 even without landing a Toyota auto factory or Amazon headquarters expected to be announced within months.

North Carolina should be ready for more urbanization and a middle class that keeps shrinking in the coming decades.

By several measures, the North Carolina economy is humming along nicely. But a deeper look at the data shows the benefits of the strong economy are concentrated among fewer people, leaving more winners and losers and an ever widening gap of income inequality.

North Carolina's economy will grow another two percent next year - on par with growth in 2016, according to a UNC Charlotte economic forecast.

The state’s higher education institutions had a $63.5 billion impact on the state’s economy in the 2012-13 fiscal year, according to a new study. 

Higher education leaders say the report shows that the North Carolina’s institutions of higher education are providing a strong return on investment for students and taxpayers.

It notes that taxpayers invested $4.3 billion to support higher education in 2012-13, and received a $17 billion return.