Orphe Divounguy: The Chicago-area economy is cooling too quickly – Crain’s*

"From November 2022 to November 2023, employment here grew a meager 0.8%, compared to the national rate of 1.8% during the same period. It certainly didn't help that ongoing net outmigration continues to have a detrimental impact on population growth in the Chicago area.While the U.S. unemployment rate remained fairly constant at 3.7% in the second half of 2023, Chicago-area unemployment rose to 4.7% in November from 3.9% in June. Perhaps an even more alarming concern is the state of average hourly earnings."