FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Oct. 19, 2023
CONTACT: Sarah Dickson
OKLAHOMA CITY- The Oklahoma City Branch of the Federal Reserve of Kansas City released its latest issue of the quarterly publication the Oklahoma Economist, titled “Outsized Decline: Oklahoma’s Energy Employment since 2019.”
While Oklahoma continues to employ more oil and gas workers than any state but Texas, Oklahoma’s energy sector has seen bigger job losses in recent years than any other oil and gas state, according to Chad Wilkerson, senior vice president and branch executive at the Oklahoma City Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City.
“Oklahoma’s higher share of gas production amid falling profitability, along with its slower productivity growth and larger number of headquarters and office workers resulted in an outsized fall in state energy employment over the past four years,” he said.
Wilkerson said that while the energy sector has added jobs over the past year, these gains were smaller in Oklahoma than other oil and gas states, further widening the gap.
“Whether these trends can be reversed heading forward remains to be seen, but opportunities like new liquified natural gas markets for U.S. natural gas as well as technology enhancements within aging fields can sometimes alter the location of activity in the nation’s energy sector,” he said.
The complete issue is available at External Linkwww.kansascityfed.org/oklahomacity/oklahoma-economist.
The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City serves the Tenth Federal Reserve District, encompassing the western third of Missouri; all of Kansas, Colorado, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Wyoming; and the northern half of New Mexico. As part of the nation’s central bank, the Bank participates in setting national monetary policy, supervising and regulating numerous commercial banks and bank holding companies, and providing financial services to depository institutions. More information is available online at External Linkwww.kansascityfed.org.