A new report predicts continued sluggish economic growth in New England and cautions that most states in the region will not return to pre-recession employment levels until 2015.
The four-year forecast released Wednesday by the New England Economic Partnership says Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont will have the strongest economies in the six-state region, while Rhode Island will continue to experience the highest unemployment.
The economists said Maine and Connecticut will also struggle to reach pre-recession jobs levels before the end of 2016.
The forecast assumes some sort of compromise in the ongoing "fiscal cliff" negotiations, but warns that New England — because of its higher than average per capita income — could be hit harder than the nation as a whole if there is no deal and taxes go up.
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