New York City Recession Less Severe than National Average

Just read an article in Crain's New York with some interesting statistics. Though this is certainly a serious recession, and many people have been directly affected, it may not be as severe as one would assume, listening to gloom and doom media reports.

The 18-Month Recession

From the time the recession hit the city in August 2008 until hiring resumed in December 2009, the city lost 184,500 jobs, a 4.8% decrease. It fared far better than the U.S. as a whole, which lost 8.4 million jobs, a decrease of 7.3%.

Industry's Revenue Stars

Despite the financial meltdown, the 10 city institutions with the most revenues brought in over 10% more in '09 than in '05. However, only six institutions from the earlier list remain.

So there is definitely change afoot, and there is definitely need for an overhaul of both financial and governmental sectors with true accountability, and more clarity.