Marion, IA – Marion Economic Development Corporation (MEDCO) has released the Marion Community Index for the fourth quarter of 2022. The report is informed by a business survey that allows MEDCO to measure the health, challenges, optimism, and opportunities of the organization’s business partners. Forty-one companies participated in Q4. The survey focuses primarily on sales growth, material pricing, and employment trends.

Survey responses were collected during the week of January 9th.

• 46% of companies experienced Q4 sales growth compared to the same quarter in 2021.
• 39% of companies expect sales to grow in the next quarter, while 49% expect sales to grow in the next year.
• 61% of respondents experienced an increase in raw material prices over the past quarter.
• 54% expect material prices to continue to increase in the next quarter.
• 32% of companies added employees to their team in the fourth quarter.
• 37% anticipate increasing their workforce in the next quarter, while 46% anticipate workforce growth over the next year.

Additional survey trends from the past year are available at the end of this report.

“Business leaders are more optimistic about the improved supply chain than we’ve seen for the past year. Although interest rates and inflation continue to be top of mind, project pipelines remain strong,” says Brady Quinn, MEDCO’s Business Retention Specialist. “Workforce demand remains robust, so the ability to attract and retain workforce will be key to being able to support our local partners be able to meet their customers’ expectations.”

ABOUT MEDCO: The Marion Economic Development Corporation exists to be economic development thought leaders who drive competitive advantage for Marion.