Noteworthy: Hurricane Ike: six months later, still assessing the damage

On Sept. 13, Hurricane Ike made landfall at Galveston. Six months later, many Texas Gulf Coast communities continue to struggle with debris and damage. Rebuilding is under way, but full recovery is likely to take years.Natural disasters

Noteworthy: health care: hospital building boom under way in Texas

Medical care ; Construction industry

Noteworthy: Texas trade: air shipments up for imports, exports

Trade ; Imports ; Transportation ; Economic conditions - Texas

Regional update : outside forces still sapping Texas economy's vitality

A sluggish national economy, the global credit crunch and Hurricane Ike have taken some steam out of Texas' growth.Economic conditions - Texas

Texas growth slows but remains healthy

Although still outperforming the nation,> the Texas economy weakened toward the end of the year. Manufacturing and housing have been the most fragile sectors, but growth has moderated in other areas as well.Texas ; Economic conditions

Manning the gates: migration policy in the Great Recession

During the downturn, advanced economies as well as developing countries adopted policies ranging from keeping new migrants out to encouraging resident migrants to leave.Emigration and immigration ; Immigrants ; Global financial crisis ; Recessions

Spotlight: unemployment trends: less-educated workers hit hard in housing bust

The U.S. housing market's troubles have spread to financial markets, and news reports have focused on broad indicators of Wall Street's distress, such as stock market indexes and interbank lending rates. However, the pinch on Main Street has been impacting low-wage workers for more than two years.Education - Economic aspects ; Unemployment ; Labor market

Spotlight: upper East Texas in slump, region holds up better than U.S.

As the U.S. and Texas slipped into recession last year, a balanced economy lessened the impact on upper East Texas. In March, the region's year-over-year nonfarm employment was down 0.4 percent, compared with the state's decline of 0.8 percent and the nation's 3.5 percent. Unemployment rates in the region's principal metros are near or below the state's 6.7 percent average.Economic conditions - Texas ; Employment - Texas

Regional update : Texas economy still slowing; energy, exports are bright spots

Economic conditions - Texas ; Energy industries ; Exports ; Employment - Texas