The economy of the U.S. state of Oregon is made up of a number of sectors. During the 1990s and 2000s,
Oregon
Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...
has attempted to transition its economy from one based on
natural resource
Natural resources are resources that are drawn from nature and used with few modifications. This includes the sources of valued characteristics such as commercial and industrial use, aesthetic value, scientific interest and cultural value. ...
s to one based on a mix of manufacturing, services, and high technology.
In the 1980s, hard times hit Oregon's main resource sectors: timber, fishing, and agriculture. Efforts by the state government to diversify the state economy led to the growth of Oregon's high tech sector, based in the three counties surrounding
Portland, Oregon
Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the list of cities in Oregon, largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, Columbia rivers, Portland is ...
, but rural counties were left out. The tech bust of the early 2000s caused Oregon to lose many of the 43,000 jobs lost between 2000 and 2003. Between 2004 and 2007, Oregon's and the nation's economies grew based on increases in construction and services. Construction alone added 21,000 jobs during the period.
The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Oregon in 2021 was $270.12 billion; it is United States' 25th wealthiest state by GDP. The state's
per capita personal income in 2021 was $59,484. As of November 2021, the state's unemployment rate is 4.2%. Oregon ranks 37th in the nation for unemployment.
History
![Logging oregon](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e2/Logging_oregon.jpg)
The fur trade was Oregon's first major industry. Beginning in the 1840s, settlers began displacing Native Americans and setting up farms. Though growth was slow for the coastal region there was rapid growth in the
Willamette Valley
The Willamette Valley ( ) is a long valley in Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. The Willamette River flows the entire length of the valley and is surrounded by mountains on three sides: the Cascade Range to the eas ...
and
Portland
Portland most commonly refers to:
* Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States
* Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...
in particular. With the discovery of gold in 1861-62 in
Baker county and
Grant County Grant County may refer to:
Places
;Australia
* County of Grant, Victoria
;United States
*Grant County, Arkansas
*Grant County, Indiana
* Grant County, Kansas
*Grant County, Kentucky
*Grant County, Minnesota
*Grant County, Nebraska
*Grant C ...
in Eastern Oregon had begun establishing itself as a major shipping hub with a focus on wheat. With the railroad's arrival to Oregon, Portland has sealed its position as the economic center of the state.
In the following decades, loggers and salmon fishers joined the miners.
With the coming of the First World War, the state's shipyard industry and timber trades continued to expand rapidly again, especially in Portland. In the 1930s, the Works Projects Administration and the Civilian Conservation Corps introduced through the New Deal would construct many projects throughout the state including Timberline Lodge on Mt. Hood and many hydroelectric dams along Oregon's rivers.
The
Bonneville Dam
Bonneville Lock and Dam consists of several run-of-the-river dam structures that together complete a span of the Columbia River between the U.S. states of Oregon and Washington at River Mile 146.1. The dam is located east of Portland, Oregon ...
, built from 1933-1937 provided low cost electricity that helped fuel development of industries such as aluminum plants, like
Wah Chang Corporation located in
Albany. The power, food, and lumber provided by Oregon helped fuel the development of the West, although the periodic fluctuations in the nation's building industry have hurt the state's economy on multiple occasions. That coupled with needs of World War II food production, shipbuilding and the lumber were also greatly enhanced throughout the state.
Exports
20% of the manufacturing jobs in Oregon rely on exports which totaled $19.4 billion in 2009 with over 40% of the total going to countries in Asia.
The largest countries receiving exports from Oregon in 2009 were:
[
* Canada ($2.8 billion)
* China ($2.5 billion)
* Japan ($2 billion)
* Malaysia ($2 billion)
* South Korea ($1.3 billion)
The state's top exports in 2009 by category were:][
* computer and electronic products ($6.8 billion)
* machinery manufactures ($1.1 billion)
]
See also
* List of power stations in Oregon
This is a list of electricity-generating power stations in the U.S. state of Oregon, sorted by type and name. In 2019, Oregon had a total summer capacity of 16,787 MW through all of its power plants, and a net generation of 62,258 GWh. ...
* History of Oregon
The history of Oregon, a U.S. state, may be considered in five eras: geologic history, inhabitation by native peoples, early exploration by Europeans (primarily fur traders), settlement by pioneers, and modern development.
The term "Oregon" ...
*
References
{{United States topic
, title = Economy of the United States
The United States is a highly developed mixed-market economy and has the world's largest nominal GDP and net wealth. It has the second-largest by purchasing power parity (PPP) behind China. It has the world's seventh-highest List of countr ...
, prefix = Economy of
, exclude-wdc = y
, exclude-isl = y