Weekly Economic Trends and Indicators

The Headlines:

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) recently reported that nonfarm payroll employment in the Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL metropolitan area decreased by 100 in December to 179,200 from a revised 179,300 in November on a seasonally adjusted basis. Before seasonal adjustment, jobs in the metro area were down 1,500 from 181,500 to 180,000. The seasonally unadjusted employment rates for the counties in the metro area ranged from 4.0% (Scott County) to 6.2% (Rock Island County).

The Details:

Employment was either level or slightly down for most categories of jobs in the Quad Cities in December. Where employment was lower, it was mostly due to seasonal fluctuations, such as in mining, logging, and construction (-700) and leisure and hospitality (-400). Manufacturing employment increased by 200 jobs in December to 23,200 which was only 100 jobs lower than a year ago.

Overall, nonfarm payroll jobs in the Quad Cities decreased by 0.9% in 2025. Categories of jobs for which employment increased over the course of the year were mining, logging, and construction (+3.8%), Private education and health services (+0.7%), and other services (+1.5). Categories for which employment decreased in 2025 were manufacturing (-0.4%), trade, transportation and utilities (-2.0%), professional and business services (-2.0%), leisure and hospitality (-2.8%), and government (-1.9%).

Unemployment rates increased in all metro area counties except Scott County. The increase in unemployment rates locally is mostly in line with seasonal fluctuations. The BLS does not seasonally adjust metro area unemployment rates. Typically, unemployment rates in the Quad Cities tend to rise in the last few months of the year, peaking in January.

The Context:

As we have mentioned previously, both the national and local labor markets have shown evidence of slowing down over the last year. However, whether this is due to changes on the demand side or the supply side of the market is not fully understood yet. Job posting data for the Quad Cities shows that the number of jobs and firms posting jobs is on the rise. The context for this is discussed in more detail in our recently issued Quarterly Market Report which also includes results from our recent Business Outlook Survey.

Next week: U.S. labor market update