Dr. Mike Walden, North Carolina Cooperative Extension economist in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at N.C. State University, responds:

"Well, so far we would say no because so far the statistics indicate North Carolina is actually doing better. Now we are suffering, we are seeing an economic slowdown, but, for example, the housing market is down, but it's down only two-thirds as much as the nation. Home prices in North Carolina are holding up much better than in the nation. Foreclosures are up, but the rate is 30 percent lower than in the country. In terms of jobs, yes, our unemployment rate is up, but the rise has been slightly slower than the national increase. One reason for this relatively good news is that manufacturing has actually been on a boom in North Carolina. Manufacturing output over the latest period has been rising 50 percent faster here in North Carolina than in the nation. And although we are still seeing jobs being dropped from our traditional manufacturing sector, the rate of decrease has slowed. So yes, we are seeing a downturn, a slowdown if you will, in the North Carolina economy, but it is less steep so far than in the nation, and we certainly hope it stays that way."