The current-dollar gross domestic product (GDP) was $31.9 billion for North Dakota in 2009. The government sector was 14 percent of North Dakota’s total GDP. Real estate captured 11 percent, followed by manufacturing at 9 percent, agriculture and health care at 8 percent and wholesale trade and finance at 7 percent.

This month’s “Economic Brief,” a monthly publication from the North Dakota State Data Center at North Dakota State University, focuses on state gross domestic product by industry sector. According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, gross domestic product by state, considered the state counterpart of the nation’s GDP, is the value added in production by the labor and capital in a state.

After adjusting for inflation, North Dakota’s real-dollar GDP grew 4 percent from 2008 to 2009. This was the third fastest economic growth in the nation behind Oklahoma and Wyoming.

Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting were the leading contributors to real-dollar GDP growth in North Dakota. These were followed by wholesale trade, government, finance and insurance, and construction.

“What is impressive about our state’s growth in GDP is that it took place during one of the worst recessions since the Great Depression,” says Richard Rathge, State Data Center director. “In fact, the GDP of the U.S. and 36 states actually declined by 2 percent during this period.”

When combined, the four largest state GDPs (California, Texas, New York and Florida) captured approximately one-third of the nation’s total GDP in 2009. The two smallest state GDPs, North Dakota and Vermont, each captured 0.2 percent.

For additional information and methodology regarding GDP, visit http://www.bea.gov/regional/gsp.

NDSU Agriculture Communication