State Stix                                                     

Seven of Illinois' nine top employers are public entities, according to an analysis by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Community Affairs. The department analyzed January 1993 employment data from Dun & Bradstreet Corporation and reported the listing in its quarterly report entitled, Illinois Economic Summary, which is the source for all information reported here. The Summary noted that the state's jobless rate has hovered stubbornly above 8 percent since February.

Other economic news was mixed. The barometer of business activity is a cumulative index compiled from surveys by national and Chicago associations of purchasing managers. It measures such activity as production, new orders, inventories, employment and prices. An index rating of 50 or above means business activity is expanding because more than half the companies reported favorable trends in economic activity. The index for Chicago was strong in 1992 and has started 1993 on an upswing. On the other hand, contracts for future construction in Illinois fell by 26 percent in February, continuing a steep slide that began in the second quarter of 1992.

Donald Sevener

July 1993/Illinois Issues/41