N.H. GDP growth slowed in 2011

New Hampshire’s real gross domestic product growth kept pace with the national rate in 2011, although the state’s rate of growth was almost two-thirds lower than a year earlier.New Hampshire’s real GDP grew 1.5 percent in 2011, which was also the average real GDP growth rate in the U.S., according to the figures released Tuesday by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.That was good enough to land the state in the second-highest quintile for GDP growth, which is the leading measure of U.S. economic activity. It was the 19th highest gain in the nation. But it was a big drop-off from 2010, when the state’s real GDP increased by 4.3 percent and the national rate grew by 3.1 percent.Nationally, real GDP increased in 43 states and the District of Columbia in 2011. Only five states saw a year-over-year decrease in real GDP in 2011, one of which was Maine, which had a growth rate of -0.4 percent in 2011.Maine had the worst growth rate in New England last year, followed by Vermont, with a growth of 0.5 percent, and Rhode Island, which saw a 0.8 percent gain. Only Massachusetts and Connecticut saw bigger gains than the Granite State, with GDP growth rates of 2.2 percent and 2 percent, respectively. Durable-goods manufacturing was the largest contributor to U.S. real GDP growth by state, with an increase of 7.9 percent in 2011, after increasing 17 percent in 2010. In New Hampshire, durable-goods manufacturing also posted strong gains, increasing by 6.7 percent. The state’s non-durable goods manufacturing sector also posted a strong year-over-year gain of 7.5 percent in 2011.Professional, scientific, and technical services and information services were also leading contributors to U.S. real GDP by state growth, increasing 4.9 percent in 2011. In New Hampshire, the gains were even stronger, with the sector growing 8.2 percent in 2011.Nationally, real estate, rental, and leasing subtracted the most from real GDP growth, falling in 40 states, including New Hampshire, where the sector dipped by -2 percent.Per-capita real GDP by state in 2011 ranged from a high of $63,159 in Delaware to a low of $28,293 in Mississippi. New Hampshire’s per capita real GDP of $42,916 was just above the U.S. average of $42,070. – KATHLEEN CALLAHAN/NEW HAMPSHIRE BUSINESS REVIEW