Corpus Christi
at the margin.

## Labor Market Conditions — Corpus Christi

Corpus Christi's labor market is in equilibrium, holding steady after a period of gradual expansion. Employment grew 0.85% over the past year, a modest but positive rate that signals the local workforce is absorbing demand without significant strain in either direction. The unemployment rate has been unchanged year-over-year, reinforcing the picture of a market that has found its footing rather than one pushing in a clear new direction.

The drivers here are stability rather than acceleration. Payroll momentum is holding steady — growth has not meaningfully picked up, but it hasn't retreated either (Fig. 1). The energy and petrochemical sectors that anchor this metro tend to produce exactly this kind of plateau behavior when commodity cycles flatten: employers maintain headcount, but hiring urgency fades. There are no signs of stress, but equally no catalyst pulling the market into a tighter configuration right now.