The shape of Colorado's economic recovery will largely be determined by how quickly, and how many, Coloradans get back to work this quarter.
In a surprise turn of events, the Denver metro area added 30,000 jobs during the month of May, according to the latest monthly data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The nonfarm unemployment rate drew closer to 10%, well below the national average, making Denver a consistent outperformer in good times and bad.
Denver's above-average concentration of office-using jobs appears to have softened the blow to the local economy, as many office employees have the capability to work from home. At the same time, many of Denver's oil and gas companies occupy large blocks of office space in the CBD, which could lead to more volatility in the office market.