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W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 15 JA N UA R Y 9 , 2 0 2 3 F O C U S 2 0 2 3 E C O N O M I C O U T L O O K "e capacity that this building will give all of us to work together is very exciting," Saufley says. She notes that while supply-chain issues mean the building will probably not be at its full technological capacity until late spring, advantages include bright, clean classrooms equipped with whiteboards, conference rooms and a ground-floor, 100-capacity classroom that can be converted into a mock courtroom or hearing room for stu- dent practice. is month also marks a new chapter for Maine Law in Fort Kent, with the opening of a Rural Practice Clinic for students to represent clients in real cases while living on campus at the University of Maine at Fort Kent. Back in Portland, Maine Law is in early-stage talks with the Graduate School of Business about the opening of a new business law clinic, Saufley says. "Every opportunity to see how the law works in reality is a wonder- ful opportunity for law students, who then start thinking about how they will design their own careers and how they can change those parts of the world they really want to change," she says. T H E E C O N O M Y 'Higher than usual' chance for economic slowdown B Y R E N E E C O R D E S W hat's the outlook for the economy in Maine and nationwide this year? "ere is a higher than usual chance of a slowdown in 2023," says Amanda Rector, Maine's state economist. "Contributing factors include ongoing inflation especially impacting energy, shelter and food prices, and the Federal Reserve interest rate increases intended to bring inflation under control." She gave her assessment just after the Fed raised the target for the federal funds rate to a range of 4.25% to 4.5% on Dec.14, reiterating its commitment to bring inflation back down to 2%. e Federal Open Market Committee said that while recent indicators point to modest growth in spending and production, inflation remains elevated, reflect- ing supply and demand imbalances related to the pandemic, higher food and energy prices and broader price pressures. As the Fed raises interest rates to tame persistently high inflation, some types of economic activities may be affected more than others, Rector notes. "Retail trade, construction, finance and insurance may be affected relatively more, while health care and social assistance will likely be less affected," she says. "High energy prices and hous- ing affordability are my biggest concerns," she says: "If residents and businesses are paying more for fuel and electricity, they have less money to spend on other parts of their budgets. Similarly, high housing costs can limit spending in other areas." As for Maine's labor market, she observes that most of the people who left the workforce during the pandemic and are still out of the labor force are older workers who accelerated their retirement plans. "ere are many strategies to increase labor force participation of older workers, including skills, training and increased workplace flexibility," she says. Get on the highway to health with group coverage that rocks in the nation's largest network of dentists. ONG LIVE SMILE POWER C O N T I N U E D O N F O L L OW I N G PA G E » P H O T O / F R E D F I E L D Amanda Rector is the state economist for Maine.

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