The El Paso economy softened in July. Employment slumped, and year-over-year housing sales and trade volumes weakened. Although industrial production and maquiladora activity continued to signal growth, this growth may be slowing. The El Paso Business-Cycle Index declined at an annualized rate of 0.7 percent in July (Chart 1). The recent plateauing of the index is attributed to diminished employment growth in the metro. July employment fell at an annualized rate of 1.7 percent, largely due to a loss of 1,010 professional and business services jobs. Despite the recent dip, year-to-date employment expanded at an ... (full story)