Economic forecasts,
for the greater Seattle area.
Consider us your research center, providing you answers in easy to understand language and charts.
Established in 1993, The Puget Sound Economic Forecaster is a quarterly report published by the Center for Economic and Business Research at Western Washington University which acquired the publication in 2017 from its founders, Conway Pedersen Economics, Inc.
The report and website are designed for business executives, marketing directors, investors, government managers, and researchers who need a professional and objective view on the economic prospects for the Puget Sound region (King County, Kitsap County, Pierce County, and Snohomish County).
Our goal is to provide accurate and well-reasoned forecasts for the region as well as clear and insightful observations on important developments in the economy.
In-Depth Regional Economic Outlook
The first issue of the
Puget Sound Economic Forecaster,
a quarterly report,
was published in December 1993.
Each report contains a summary forecast, in-depth discussion of the regional outlook, forecasts and analyses of retail sales and construction and real estate, a special topic (e.g., China and Population Change), a detailed forecast table, and the Puget Sound Index of Leading Economic Indicators.
To facilitate research and analysis on the regional economy, every issue of the regional economic report is archived as a downloadable PDF file in the Subscriber Area. A comprehensive Subject Index of the archived reports has been developed to aid in the retrieval of information.
Reports are posted to the web site one to two weeks before the printed copy is mailed.
Sample Report – Data, Trade and Trends [Volume 27, Number 2, June 2019]
With thoughts of the long warm days of summer on our minds, we have found ourselves interrupted pondering about the price of avocados and how the latest round of tariff threats that may impact retail sales and the general economy overall. Thoughts of spending time at the lake or river have found us considering stream flows and how the change in our climate may impact all of the people and businesses that rely on water in one way or another. Daydreams of patio and deck BBQs have caused us to reflect on changes in house prices and the sudden growth in sales outside of the King County – is it more commuters or are jobs moving? Will the Seattle to Everett corridor retain its worst traffic in the nation ranking? Evidently, economists are bad at not thinking about things. All of the above is ahead in this edition of the Forecaster plus a better understanding of workforce participation and the state forecast. We will just call it the beach edition.
Additional Features
In addition to the Quarterly Report,
we regularly publish
Additional Feature Reports
Breaking News
What We Are Following in the News
From FRB Philadelphia: The near-term outlook for the U.S. economy looks more positive now than it did three months ago, according to 32 forecasters responding to the Third Quarter Survey of Professional Forecasters. The forecasters predict the economy will expand at an annual rate of 2.5 percent this quarter and 2.3 percent next quarter, up from the predictions of 2.2 percent and 1.6 percent in the last survey. On an annual-average over annual-average basis, the panel predicts real GDP will grow between 2.1 percent and 2.4 percent from 2026 to 2029. The forecasters predict the unemployment rate will range from 4.2 percent to 4.3 percent from this quarter through the second quarter of 2027. On the employment front, the forecasters predict job gains in the current quarter at a rate of 45,600 per month, which is lower than the previous estimate of 61,200. However, the projections for the annual-average level of nonfarm payroll employment suggest job gains at a monthly rate of 40,700 in 2026 and 75,400 in 2027, both higher than the previous estimates. https://www.philadelphiafed.org/surveys-and-data/real-time-data-research/spf-q3-2026?utm_medium=email&utm_source=data-release&utm_campaign=SPF&utm_c
Seattle ranks worst among major U.S. metro areas when it comes to the share of rentals with two or more bedrooms, according to a new analysis. Translated, that means a costly nightmare for families, even relatively well-off ones. https://www.seattletimes.com/business/real-estate/seattle-area-doesnt-have-enough-family-sized-units-to-go-around/?utm_source=marketingcloud&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Morning+Brief+08-14-26_8_14_2026&utm_term=Active%20subscriber
Global movie ticket sales are on pace for their best yearly total since the pandemic, an extraordinary turnaround with big implications for Hollywood. The entertainment industry as a whole is going through massive changes. https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2026-hollywood-movies-are-back/?cmpid=BBD081426_businessweek&utm_campaign=businessweek&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_term=260814&utm_c
A flood of foreign currency bond issuance by Big Tech groups is shaking up the world’s smaller credit markets, pushing borrowing costs higher and causing local issuers to shift the timing of their deals, investors have said. https://www.ft.com/content/ff2742b0-2c71-471c-b725-fea8f8021f62?desktop=true&segmentId=7c8f09b9-9b61-4fbb-9430-9208a9e233c8&syn-25a6b1a6=1#myft:notification:daily-email:content
Apartment absorption totaled 163,739 units in the second quarter, exceeding the 118,047 units added to supply. That imbalance helped bring national vacancy down to 8.15%, a 26-basis-point decline from the first quarter and 14 basis points lower than a year earlier. For investors, however, the more relevant distinction may be between the full inventory and stabilized assets. Stabilized vacancy, which excludes properties still leasing up after completion, increased 34 basis points year-over-year. The 48-basis-point spread between the movement in overall and stabilized vacancy indicates that much of the recent occupancy progress occurred in new developments rather than across operating properties. https://www.globest.com/2026/08/12/lower-vacancy-does-not-tell-the-full-apartment-story?utm_source=email&utm_medium=enl&utm_campaign=eveningalert&utm_c
Questions? We Love Questions!
We receive a wide-range of questions every day and would love to hear yours. Questions lead to data and data should lead to better questions.
Special Topics
Special topics in each report
intended to increase the
reader’s understanding of
how the Puget Sound economy works
Past topics include regional growth, labor productivity, demographic trends, inflation, multipliers, entrepreneurs, and state and local taxes.
Web site subscribers currently have access to more than fifty special topics. Here are four examples drawn from the Special Topic Archive:
Stream Flow [Volume 27, Number 2, June 2019]
Is Traffic Real? [Volume 27, Number 1, March 2019]
Labor Force and Population [Volume 26, Number 4, December 2018]
Forest Fires [Volume 26, Number 3, September 2018]
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