Colorado added 45,300 non-agricultural jobs over the past 12 months, a growth rate of 1.7%. Although that is a respectable number, employment growth has been trending lower in 2017 as the state reaches full employment. Within the metropolitan market areas included in this report, there was annual employment growth in all areas other than Grand Junction, where employment was modestly lower.

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The counties covered by this report—Los Angeles, San Diego, San Bernardino, Orange, and Riverside—added 130,300 new jobs between November 2016 and November 2017. As a result, the unemployment rate dropped from 4.7% to 3.8%. Employment growth in Southern California picked up a bit as we moved through the final quarter of last year, and I expect this to continue as we move into 2018.

Employment in the Las Vegas metropolitan area continues to moderate but, with a year-over-year employment growth rate of 2.7%, the region is still performing well above the national average of 1.4%. Over the past 12 months, the area has added 25,500 new jobs. This has led to a respectable unemployment rate of 5.3%.