A return to normal growth.

• Position: Indiana's economic indicators

After sustaining a blistering 7.5 percent annual growth rate in the Gross Domestic Product during the fourth quarter of 1993, the U.S. economy seems to be growing at a much more controlled pace in 1994, based on monthly employment reports.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported virtually flat employment growth in January and growth of 217,000 jobs in February. The average of those two months was roughly half the average posted during the last quarter of last year.

While bad weather kept retailers and services from adding to payrolls in January, manufacturers added 30,000 new jobs that month, plus another 12,000 in February. That puts industry employment back at its level from the spring of 1993 and indicates that manufacturers are again adding capacity through increased payroll rather than through productivity improvements.

Indiana's employment picture in January, the latest month for which figures are available, mirrors the national report. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the state gained just 3,200 jobs in January, with many metro areas recording job losses for the month. However, after adjusting for seasonality, manufacturing payrolls grew steadily.

New methodology adopted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics makes it difficult to compare January state figures with those from December. Therefore, it will take a little more time to tell exactly what direction the state numbers are heading.

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