The U.S. economy shrank in the fourth quarter for the first time since 2009, hurt by the largest cut in defense spending in 40 years, fewer exports and sluggish growth in company stockpiles.
The figures don’t bode well for hiring in Milwaukee, where manufacturing makes up about 15 percent of the economy, according to Kurt Rankin, an economist at The PNC Financial Services Group in Pittsburgh.
“Until the nation calls on Milwaukee’s manufacturers to produce more, the prospects for job growth are lessened,” Rankin said.
Read more in this week’s edition of BizTimes Money Weekly.
