Central Louisiana is showing steady economic growth. That’s the big takeaway from the latest study from the CENLA Economic Dashboard. Its July 2025 Edition reveals that the Alexandria metropolitan area has gained 707 jobs since May, for a total of 61,721 in the workforce.
The dashboard’s author, LSU of Alexandria Professor Randall Dupont, D.B.A., says Natchitoches is recovering from the April closure of its International Paper plant. As the Louisiana Radio Network reports, Dupont explained, “They are making an incredible rebound. They’re up 442 jobs in this quarter compared to the first quarter of this year.”
Consumer spending has also been on the rise. Dupont says the dashboard measures sales tax revenue to track spending rates. Alexandria and Pineville each recorded quarterly growth of 4% to 5%, while Natchitoches posted 8%.
The unemployment rate in the Alexandria MSA stood at 4.7%. That’s slightly above the statewide average of 4.5%. The report says this suggests that “while employment levels are rising, labor force growth or job-seeking activity may be contributing to a modest uptick in the unemployment rate as new graduates enter the labor force.”
Another area of growth for Central Louisiana was tax revenue generated by hotel occupancy in multiple parishes, showing increased travel and lodging activity in the region, as well.
As for housing, the CENLA Economic Dashboard shows that the 30-year fixed mortgage rate is down from its peak near 8% in late 2023. For the second quarter, the rate in Central Louisiana stood at 6.75%. While that represents an important drop to help fuel the economy, the rate is still considered high in historical averages. As such, this higher rate continues to affect affordability and buyer activity across the Alexandria MSA.
