Introduction An economic indicator is a statistical data showing the general trend in the economy. There are various forms of economic indicators such as leading indicators, coincidental economic indicators, and lagging indicators among others (Abed, Gupta and FondsMone?taire International, 2002). The leading indicators may be predicted prior to their occurrence. On the other hand, those that occur at the same time with the related economic activities are known as coincidental economic indicators. They are called coincidental indicators because they occur concurrently with the economic activities. In addition, those that become apparent after the level of activity in an economy increases are called lagging indicators. Examples of lagging indicators include the gross domestic product (GDP), industrial production, stock market prices, unemployment, and consumer price index among others. This paper shall provide an analysis of the Indiana economic indicators. Economic Recession Economic recession is a situation where an economy experiences a negative GDP for consecutive financial quarters. In this case, the level of economic activities falls across the economy during a recession. Therefore, recession is an economic indicator that can be used to analyse the Indiana economy. According to Kinghorn(n.d), one side effect of recession is that it slows down migration of people across Indiana. In the period between 2009 and 2012, the Indiana economy experienced a boom. This was a period of economic prosperity, and it extended to other states such as Florida, Arizona, and Nevada. During this period, there was migration of people leading to overpopulation in some parts of Indiana. In 2009, there was a net influx of more than 5,000 people in Hamilton, a county in Indiana. The influx in the county was followed by Hendricks with 1,840 people. The migration led to problems of unemployment in some counties of Indiana such as in Elkhart County. In the same year, migration in Indiana left many rural areas with less population. People migrated to look for good housing, as well as employment opportunities. The migration was further fuelled by harsh economic condition that was being experienced during this period (Livingstone, 1996). Housing and labour force The census conducted between the year 2000 and 2008 indicated that there had been a persistent increase in housing units by 9 per cent. This resulted to a figure of about 620,000 units in 2008. Majority of the affected people were those who owned the houses, standing at 68 per cent. Similarly, 25 per cent of the houses were rented out, and the remaining percentage was vacant or seasonal housing (Hendry, 2002). The statistics indicates that, between the years 2000 and 2008, the economy of Indiana was performing quite well. Additionally, the statistics collected in 2009 showed that 690,000 people were living in Indiana. Out of this figure, 88 per cent of the people were working, whereas 12 per cent were still looking for employment. Therefore, it can be asserted that, during 2000 to 2008, the economy of Indiana was performing well. This is indicated by the percentage of those that were already in employment (Ru??u??tel, 2003). Agricultural Exports From the 2008 statistics, Indiana ranked as a large producer of agricultural products in the United States. Also, the Indiana state was ranked as the largest exporter of agricultural commodities. Since 2004, the exports of agricultural produce had nearly doubled (Hendry, 2002). This is also another indicator that, the economy of Indiana has been improving over the years. Statistical figures further indicated that agricultural activities in Indiana have been increasing. The increase in the level of economic activities indicates that the growth of the economy of Indiana is on a positive trend (Hendry, 2002). Jobs and Wages in Automotive Manufacturing Industry in Indiana From the statistics collected between 2008 and 2009, it showed that, in counties manufacturing parts of automobiles, workers experienced unemployment and low wages. On the other hand, counties with relatively high proportion of workers in full vehicle manufacturing have stable employment and high wages (Kinghorn, n.d). It was also noted that counties that focused on manufacturing motor vehicle parts experienced volatile employment pattern. This was heavily affected by the national recession cycle. In addition, employment in automotive manufacturing industry is distributed across Indiana. This is especially towards the north and near Michigan State. Employment in this industry is perceived to be volatile and has a downward trend. There has been a persistent increase in the number of workers within the automobile industry from 1998 to 2008. This clearly points to the fact that the automobile industry has been performing well in some counties of Indiana. However, in Trailer cluster counties, the wages of the workers have been similar to those of working in the Motor Vehicle cluster. Indiana Employment Tenure and Trade This indicator tends to investigate how long the workers stayed in a certain industry and the wages offered. According to statistics collected between 2000 and 2008, workers in different industries were paid almost the same wage rates. The study further indicated that a majority of workers within the same cohort had been in the same sector for more than six years and were the last to be laid off. According to the data collected by Indiana Workforce and Education Intelligence System (IWIS), it showed that 31 per cent of Indiana workers had been working in the same industry, yet with a different employer (Kinghorn, n.d.). The data further indicated that more educators may have spent considerable time in the same school than in the same plant within the manufacturing industry. In addition, the study indicated that employee s wages increased with tenure across all industries. Despite a substantial fall in the Indiana GDP and domestic spending, the value of export from Indiana to Portugal remained stable in 2004 and fluctuated between 2009 and 2011. Irrespective of the fluctuation in exports, Indiana remained the largest exporter of industrial machinery and electrical machinery. This indicates how exports played a significant role in boosting the economy of Indiana (Ru??u??tel, 2003). Also, imports from Portugal to Indiana remained significantly low in 2009. This relates to the statistics gathered by Indiana Workforce and Education Intelligence System. This indicates that Indiana was experiencing a favourable balance of payment during this period. Conclusion The discussion above has explained the economic indicators of Indiana economy. It can be observed that Indiana has been experiencing fluctuations in economic aspects. During recession, there was a significant drop in migration of people. However, during the boom, Indiana witnessed a massive migration of people as they looked for better housing and more satisfying jobs. The migration patterns caused some areas of Indiana to be overpopulated. This led to a decline in the standards of living. The discussion has further examined other economic indicators such as employment trends, trade, and exports as important economic indicators of Indiana automobile industry.
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