Anchorage in top 10 of best-performing cities index.

• Author: Pounds, Nancy
• Position: Inside Alaska Business - Brief article

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Anchorage moved up from No. 40 to No. 8 in the Milken Institute's Best-Performing Cities Index. The index ranks metropolitan areas on their ability to create and sustain jobs. Researchers found that metros whose economies are heavy on service industries such as health care and on large government employers like military bases have been shielded from the job losses suffered by cities more closely tied to the housing and financial sectors.

The Best-Performing Cities Index includes both long-term (five years) and short-term (one year) measurements of employment and salary growth. There are also four measurements of technology output growth, which are included because of technology's crucial role in creating good jobs and...