Economic news from OBJ

  The Orlando Business Journal has some interesting information at its site.
  For starters, Florida’s economic indicators were up slightly in March. Slight is OK. Up is the key word here. This is on top of a modest increase in February. Hopefully the trend continues.
  Here's what OBJ reported: Florida’s leading indicator — a measurement of economic activity in the state compiled by Durham, N.H.-based e-forecasting.com — increased in March by 1 percent after going up 0.8 percent in February.
  Nine of the 10 components that make up Florida’s leading indicator had a positive contribution in March: unemployment claims, weekly hours in manufacturing, building permits, exports of manufactures, international tourism outlook, stock prices (national), interest rate spread, technology index (national) and domestic vacation barometer.
   The only negative contribution to the indicator in March was Floridians’ consumer sentiment.
NEXT IS NEWS ON OIA, which of course is a key economic driver for the region.
   OIA generates a $26.4 billion economic impact, said a March 2010 Florida Department of Transportation study, “Florida’s Statewide Aviation Economic Impact,” which looked at passengers, air cargo, employment, payroll, tenants/businesses at the airport and related construction projects.
   Orlando International, the 10th busiest airport in America and the busiest airport in Florida, had 33.7 million passengers fly in and out last year. It features two 12,000-foot runways, a 10,000-foot runway and a 9,000-foot runway. It is host to 84 domestic nonstop daily flights and 24 international nonstop daily flights winging their way to 90 U.S. cities and 23 international destinations.