State of the Economy forecasts 2026 trends
- Kenton Tsoodle
- 16 minutes ago
- 1 min read
As featured in the Journal Record
The Alliance staff attended the State of the Economy address, held annually by the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce. The event explored trends shaping our local and national economic future. Insights from local economists, as well as from a nationally recognized keynote speaker, addressed various issues facing both Oklahoma City uniquely and the national economy more broadly.
A panel of local economists explained the current challenges and opportunities we’re facing in OKC. These industry professionals predicted what folks could expect from the economy in the next year, while providing advice for how best to respond to those insights.
The entire country is expected to experience a slowdown in growth, with experts on the panel predicting that the U.S. GDP could drop from 2.8% to 1.9% in the next year. Oklahoma job growth is also projected to slow. However, potentially the largest challenge threatening our economy is the need for a high-quality and functioning K-12 education system—a sentiment that echoes recent concerns from the Oklahoma State Chamber officials who recently announced a new workforce and education initiative to support better growth.
Despite these challenges, Oklahoma City has a number of opportunities for growth in the upcoming year. One major opportunity is to increase the growth of imported and exported goods. With support from incentive programs like Oklahoma City’s Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ) #106 designation, which offers companies a competitive advantage for importing and exporting components by eliminating, reducing or deferring duties.
