Recession Looming for W.Va.

West Virginia will soon join most other states and watch as global financial woes shrink its economy and the ranks of its employed, The Associated Press reports.

AP was on hand for the latest West Virginia University forum on forecasting the state's economic health. The Charleston Gazette, Public Broadcasting (with audio) and MetroNews also covered the annual outlook conference.

"We are right on the edge of recession and a big part of that story is the slowdown in the goods-producing sectors," WVU economics professor George Hammond said. "The silver lining on that cloud is that we're actually doing better than the national economy."

The forecast calls for a net loss of about 4,800, or 0.7 percent, of jobs in West Virginia from 2008 to 2009, the article said.

MetroNews has audio both from Hammond's presentation and from David Wyss from Standard and Poor's, who commented on the national economy.