Expect a softening next year in several of the Inland Northwests key industry sectors, but remember that any ebbing we see will be from the cresting tides of what has been a robust economy here. Gone, for now, are the record years in construction and employment, but the numbers expected to be posted here in 2008 should still be solid by historical standards.


Forecasts call for job growth to slow, perhaps to less than 2 percent, from the about 2.7 percent growth seen this year and the 3.2 percent in 2006, when a phenomenal 10,000 jobs were added here. The unemployment rate likely will creep higher.


Contractors here are optimistic about 2008, despite having seen building permit numbers fall sharply this year. Construction volumes still are very strong historically, and architects and engineers here are said to be busy, portending more work next year. Meanwhile, residential real estate sales are expected to fall in 2008, though to still-respectable volumes. Home appreciation should fall back to more normal levels, and the commercial market is expected to be strong.


High-technology manufacturers here are bullish about the coming year, with some predicting 40 percent to 50 percent jumps in revenue. The retail sector, in contrast, is expected to cool, as housing-market woes and higher gas and food prices slow consumer spending.


Kootenai Countys economy is expected to stay relatively strong, despite a steeper slowdown in its housing market. A host of big projects under way or planned there are boosting optimism.


The health-care industry should remain healthy in 2008. The major hospitals here expect gains in patient volumes and are drawing up plans for more building projects, though they remain concerned about a tight labor market and declining reimbursements.


Uncertainty is the watchword for financial institutions, which say the national subprime-lending crisis is causing some softening in the mortgage market here, but add that commercial banking should remain strong. Tourism officials here are hoping that the weaker U.S. dollar will benefit the region, but say it will be tough to match this years success, which was bolstered by such events as the U.S. Figure Skating Championships.


Concerns about likely reform to the federal mining laws havent been enough to wipe the smiles off the faces of mining executives, who continue to enjoy high metals prices that are expected to continue for some time. The Silver Valley looks to benefit. The outlook is grim, however, in the lumber industry, which expects little improvement after the poor year it had in 2007. Demand for lumber could soften further with the housing downturn.


Agricultural commodity prices should remain strong in 2008, though perhaps not on par with the $12 a bushel that soft white wheat has been fetching recently. World supplies are expected to rebound.