”We’re seeing a strong recovery.”
That’s the economic assessment of Guy Williams, president of Gulf Coast Bank and Trust. Williams joined WWL Radio to discuss how well things are going as the country continues to rebound from last year’s pandemic-fueled lockdowns.
“The recovery is absolutely V-shaped,” Williams said. “The economy has taken off like a rocket ship. Retail sales are higher than they were in 2019. Steel production is higher. The staffing index, how relatively easy it is to hire somebody, it’s more difficult to hire than it was in 2019.”
Williams said airlines and hotels are also doing better business than this time two years ago, but one byproduct of bigger business has been a rise in prices, especially oil and gas.
“You pull up to the pump to buy gasoline, it’s more expensive. And that is pushing inflation up,” Williams said. “Gas is used in everything because anything that’s delivered by truck, car or airplane, you have to fuel with gasoline or diesel or kerosene, so that’s pushing prices up.”