ECOnorthwest to present 2026 State of the Economy findings at Portland Metro Chamber breakfast forum
Annual regional economic briefing scheduled for Feb. 12 in downtown Portland
ECOnorthwest economist Dr. Mike Wilkerson is scheduled to present findings from the region’s annual “State of the Economy” report on Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, during a Portland Metro Chamber breakfast forum at the Hilton Portland & Executive Tower. The event is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m., with check-in beginning at 8 a.m.
The program is designed as a data-driven update on the health of the regional economy, with a focus on regional migration patterns, job growth, and how Portland compares with a revised set of peer cities. Organizers have said the forum will also include the release of the latest “State of Downtown & the Central City” report, an annual assessment of the economic condition of Portland’s central city.
What the 2026 reports are expected to cover
Event materials indicate the 2026 “State of the Economy” presentation will emphasize three core areas:
Regional migration trends, including the scale and direction of in- and out-migration.
Job growth and labor-market conditions across key industries.
Benchmarking Portland against peer metros to contextualize performance on growth, investment conditions, and competitiveness.
The companion “State of Downtown & the Central City” report is positioned as a targeted look at economic activity in and around downtown Portland, including indicators commonly tied to recovery and investment, such as visitation and business conditions.
Context from last year’s regional assessments
The 2025 edition of the Chamber’s “State of the Economy” and “State of Downtown & the Central City” reports highlighted several stress points for the Portland metro area relative to national trends. Last year’s reports described job losses in multiple sectors while the national labor market grew, and noted continued population decline tied to net out-migration. They also pointed to ongoing constraints in housing production and signs of weakened investor sentiment in the region’s real estate market.
For downtown Portland, the 2025 downtown-focused report characterized the central city as improving on some measures while still operating below pre-pandemic levels. It also described year-over-year growth in downtown foot traffic during 2024, alongside continued weakness in office leasing compared with 2019.
Event details and next steps
The Chamber has said the breakfast forum is sold out. Organizers have also indicated that a post-event written release will summarize the findings and publish the 2026 reports in a web format after the presentation.
The annual briefing is framed as a combined release of two products: a regional economic snapshot and a central-city economic health update, intended to provide comparable metrics across time and against peer regions.