Williams releases fourth quarter Economic Indicators Report
DENVER, January 22, 2015 – Colorado Secretary of State Wayne Williams today released the Quarterly Business and Economic Indicators Report for the fourth quarter of 2014. The fourth quarter saw a small decline in new business filings and entity renewals from the third quarter, but continued growth in these categories year-over-year. Employment is projected to continue expanding in the first and second quarters of 2015.
"The end of the business filing fee holiday resulted in a small decrease in new entity formation compared to the third quarter," Secretary Williams said. "But the larger trend is that Coloradans continue to put their ideas into the marketplace and grow our economy."
During the fourth quarter, a total of 23,320 new businesses filed with the Secretary of State's office - slightly less than the third quarter, but an increase over the same time period the previous year. The office’s fee holiday for business filings, which dropped new business filing fees from $50 to $1, concluded in October.
"As a state, Colorado has done well creating jobs, but wage growth remains the missing component in this recovery." said economist Richard Wobbekind, executive director of CU-Boulder’s Business Research Division.
Published by the Business Research Division at the Leeds School of Business, University of Colorado Boulder, the Quarterly Business and Economic Indicators Report uses data from the Secretary of State’s central business registry.
The latest report found a strong correlation between new entity filings and total nonfarm employment. Colorado recorded 102,127 new entities during the last 12 months ending in December - a 13.8 percent increase over the previous twelve months. At 107,848 for the fourth quarter, existing entity renewals rose 5.5 percent compared to the same period in 2013. The greatest increase in existing entity renewals was once again in domestic limited liability companies. Thefourth quarter finished with 570,093 total entities in good standing in the business registry, a 2.8 percent increase over the prior quarter and an 8.5 percent increase over the same time in 2013.
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