Halfway through 2022, the Elko County economy has begun to shown signs of softening. In June 2022, total employment dipped 0.4 percent from the prior month to 24,861, which was down 3.4 percent from June 2021.

Similarly, the labor force shrank by 3.5 percent from the prior year to 25,681 in June 2022. The unemployment rate remained near all-time lows but increased by 0.6 percentage points over the month to 3.2 percent in June 2022. That rate was a tick below the 3.3 percent from June 2021. With the slight increase, Elko County had the fifth-lowest unemployment rate in the state.

Consumer spending metrics in Elko County continued to remain positive. Taxable retail sales increased 1.0 percent from $159.8 million in April 2022 to $161.5 million in May 2022, the second consecutive month below the record of $173.4 million set in March 2022. On a trailing 12-month basis, taxable retail sales in the county climbed 8.2 percent in May 2022 to an all-time high of $1.9 billion.

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