Virginia's Economic Forecast, Feb. 2025
Each quarter, the Cooper Center’s Economic Forecast updates major economic trends and highlight a specific sector shaping Virginia’s economy. Featuring different industries each quarter captures the evolving dynamics of the state’s economy and provide actionable insights. The report always focuses on key indicators such as employment growth, inflation, unemployment rates, GDP expansion, and government employment.
Beyond tracking Virginia’s economic trends from 2024 to 2050, this advanced model places these trends within the broader national context, helping civic leaders compare the state's economic trajectory with the rest of the country.
This comprehensive model incorporates over three hundred variables and equations, leveraging national data from Moody’s Forecast as well as more than thirty diverse data sources to tailor Virginia-specific estimates. Key inputs include data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW), Virginia Realtors, the Virginia Department of Taxation, the U.S. Census Bureau, the Energy Information Administration (EIA), and the Cooper Center’s demographic data. The model is designed to evolve over time, incorporating new data sources and refining sector-specific insights to maintain its accuracy and relevance.
For more detailed information about the model, see the short appendix at the end of the report.
Note: If your agency or IT administrator does not permit downloads from external sources, contact coopercenter@virginia.edu and we will email the Forecast to you.