Iowa businesses are suffering from an "economic hangover" due to the floods, according to one expert. The monthly survey of supply managers and business leaders across Iowa by Creighton University finds the state has yet to see the expected rebuilding boost, according to Creighton economist Ernie Goss.
Goss says: "The economy is still suffering to some degree from the floods of June. We’re still seeing some business slow-downs, some business closures that have yet to be remedied. I expect that to correct itself in the months ahead."
The checks from various charitable and governmental agencies are helping Iowans to rebuild their lives — from buying new couches to new cars and new homes — but Goss says it’s not really registering yet.
"The region that we’re surveying, which includes Iowa, is showing growth only every so slightly above growth neutral," Goss says. "We’re seeing job losses for the states, including Iowa, six months of job losses out of the last seven so the overall report was fairly negative."
He says the July losses in Iowa were, for the most part, weather-related and there will be a bounce-back.
Goss says he expects Iowa’s numbers to improve in the coming months as people continue to rebuild after the floods. In addition, he says farm income is still very healthy, export markets are strong for Iowa and production in the biofuels industry is gearing up and helping the state and regional economies.
As gasoline prices have dropped 20 to 40-cents a gallon in recent weeks, Goss says it’s an encouraging move but they’ll need to drop a significant amount more before much of an impact is seen in the Iowa economy.