By Dave Dahl
SPRINGFIELD – Illinois’ economic health has yet to suffer measurable impact from coronavirus, according to a University of Illinois economics professor.
“The Flash index, a little bit surprisingly, went up to 105.7 from 105.4, which is a small but significant increase,” said study author Fred Giertz.
“The question arises, obviously, about what’s happening when things seem to be changing on the national and worldwide basis with coronavirus.”
That’s why Giertz says it will be interesting to see what the numbers look like a month from now.
He credits strong income tax and sales tax receipts for February’s performance – exactly why those figures were up, he does not know.
The index is a weighted average of consumer spending, personal income, and corporate earnings.
Dave Dahl can be reached at News@WJBC.com.
