GOOD NEWS OVERSHADOWS THE BAD ON REGION'S ECONOMIC FRONT

There was some bad news, and some good news on the Cape Girardeau County economic front during the first quarter of 1991.

The bad news was that four businesses closed between Jan. 1 and March 16, with a loss of 49 jobs.

The good news, however, was that 24 new businesses, and a half-dozen expansions of existing industry, added 178 jobs to the county's employment rolls.

That's a net increase of 129 jobs, according to a first-quarter report by the Southeast Missouri Regional Planning and Economic Development Commission, headquartered in Perryville.

"Despite the national business downturn, the economy of Southeast Missouri has displayed a continued resilience throughout the first quarter,"said a spokesman of the planning commission. "The region recorded the opening of 54 new businesses, of all kinds, and 11 businesses reported expansion."

There was other good news for Cape County.

"March unemployment was down," said Jackie Cecil, of the local Job Service office. "Unemployment figures were up a bit in February, at about 5.3 percent, but the March figure dropped to 4.6 percent.

"Cape Girardeau County is fortunate to have such a diverse economy," said Cecil. "The slowdown of the nation's economy has affected many areas including our own. But employment totals here have remained at a high level."

One of the big expansion projects, which should slice into the Cape County unemployment role again this month, is that of Horizon Manufacturing Inc., which will be moving into new quarters, more than doubling the 14,000 square feet it now occupies.

"We've added a new product to our lines," said Ernie Eudy, vice president and CEO of Horizon, which manufactures audio cables and accessories for the music industry. "We're introducing a new speaker cabinet for P.A. Systems for the music industry.

"That's one of the reasons we needed more room," said Eudy.

Horizon currently employs about 80 people. "When we get into the new building, we'll be taking on up to 50 more people."

Horizon is moving into a 30,000-square-foot building at 230 N. Spring.

Another Cape Girardeau firm added 25 new jobs during the first quarter Magnetic Collectibles, 711 Good Hope. The firm produces a variety of novelty magnets.

Roger Mainor says his firm has thousands of ideas, produces up to 7 million magnets a year, and employs about 60 people.

Another big expansion in Southeast Missouri during the first quarter was Solar Press, located in the Perryville Industrial Park.

The firm, which employs about 80 people to produce direct-mail inserts, announced plans in March to construct a $2 million, 60,000 square foot addition to its current facility. The expansion will result in doubling the present employment.

Although industrial expansions created the bulk of the jobs during the first quarter, retail and service industries continued to show great growth, with 27 new retail businesses and 36 service establishments reported in the region, which covers a seven-county area.

One of the largest retail operations to open was that of the Royal N'Orleans Restaurant, which is actually a re-opening.

The New Orleans re-opened in February after being closed almost a year for complete renovations following a fire in 1989. The restaurant, located at the corner of Broadway and Lorimier, employs about 35 people.

Another restaurant El Chico which is expected to open in late June or early July, will add to the employmment rolls.

One of the largest losses in the region was the closing of the Harris Truck and Trailer sales. The firm, located in the Nash Road Industrial Park area, had employed 40 people.

Based on the new openings and closings, the seven-county region generated a total of 346 jobs, and lost 81.

Only three of the seven counties included in the planning commission report had single-digit unemployment Cape County at 4.6, Perry at 5.7 and Ste. Geneveive at 8.8 percent. Others in the report were Bollinger at 12 percent, Iron at 16 percent, Madison at 10.3, and St. Francois at 10.2

Meanwhile, Missouri's statewide unemployment also started its seasonal decline in March, dropping four-tenths of a percent to 6.7 percent. The unemployment rate statewide in February was 7.1 percent.

The unemployment rates are still well above March of 1990, when the state registered a 5.9 percent unemployment rate.

Donna M. White, director of the Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, said the March decline was the result of increased employment and a decline in total unemployment.

"March unemployment stood at 181,445," said White. "A year ago an estimated 153,494 workers were without jobs."

Estimated total employment in the state increased to 2,511,073 in March, up 34,100 from February and up 46,600 from a year ago. The total employment estimate surpassed the 2.5 million level for the first time since June 1989.

White said March marks the earliest month in state history that employment has topped 2.5 million, adding that much of the employment increase was due to people returning to work after winter layoffs.

The highest unemployment rate in March was 17.8 percent in Stone County while the lowest rate was 3.1 percent in the Columbia Metropolitan Statistical Area.

"Unemployment in the southern tip of Illinois remained stable," said Charles M. Vessell, labor market economist at Harrisburg. "Alexander County figures jumped more than 3 percent to 19.4, but Pulaski and Union counties each dropped about 2 percent."

Vessell said that activity in the retail and service areas was good.

"And three major construction projects University Mall, Illinois Centre, and the Big Muddy Prison kept employment stable in the Carbondale and Marion areas," said Vessell.