Chicago area's economic recovery lags other urban areas, Brookings' study finds

The Chicago Tribune reports:

Metro Chicago's economic recovery is weaker than in most major urban areas worldwide, held back by slow employment growth, according to a Brookings Institution report.

Assessing annual growth in GDP per person and in employment levels from 2013 to 2014, the think tank ranked the 14-county Chicago region No. 203 among the world's 300 largest economies. This is a marginal improvement from Chicago's ranking at 208 in Brookings' last study two years ago.

Unlike 60 percent of the metropolitan areas, this region still has not returned to pre-recession levels by those two measures, according to the report released Thursday.


"Chicago is still kind of lagging, especially if you look at its global peers," said Joseph Parilla, lead author of the report. "This reinforces the urgency the region has in terms of making the right investments and the right policy decisions in order for key industries to be successful going forward."

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