"Well, we did good ... on some measures; so-so or average on others, and not so well still on others," reports Dr. Walden, an extension economist at North Carolina State University.

"The measure we did very well on was jobs: We gained jobs in North Carolina at a 3 percent rate compared to less than 2 percent for the nation," he says. "We did about the same on total income growth: Total income growth in both North Carolina and the U.S. last was around 6 percent.

"Where we came up short, however, was income gains per person, so-called per capita income gains. The U.S. saw that number go up 5 percent; we saw that number here in North Carolina go up only 4 percent," he adds.

"And I think what this indicates is, and I think as everyone knows, the North Carolina economy is still in transition, moving away from the economy of the 20th century to the newer economy of the 21st century. And that transition is taking its toll on some of these big economic numbers."