WASHINGTON – Consumer spending has soared since the Great Recession ended five years ago in U.S. states with oil and gas drilling booms and has lagged in states hit especially hard by the housing bust.
The figures come from a new annual government report that for the first time reveals consumer spending on a state-by-state basis. They point to substantial shifts in the economy since the recession.
Spending jumped 28 percent in North Dakota, the largest gain nationwide, from 2010 through 2012. It surged nearly 16 percent in Oklahoma.
By contrast, spending rose a scant 3.5 percent in Nevada, the weakest for any state and far below the 10.7 percent national average. Arizona's 6.2 percent increase was next-weakest. Home values plummeted in both states when the housing bust hit in 2006.
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