Missouri’s economy is still struggling. Jobs are the key to economic growth and a lack of jobs is the reason Missouri keeps struggling. The state gained jobs in January, April and August, but employment fell the following month each time. State Economic Development Director Joe Driskill isn’t optimistic during a briefing with reporters, noting that in previous economic briefings he felt confident the state would emerge from recession by summer. He says summer has long gone and the state still hasn’t made an economic recovery. Quite the opposite. Missouri has been losing jobs, especially in the manufacturing sector. The Economic Development Department says the state has lost 77,000 jobs during the 19 months of recession. Business Services has lost 15,000 jobs, electronics has lost 7,800, communications has lost 6,000 to name a few. Driskill looks for some signs of life and hasn’t seen any yet. Driskill says he has briefed Governor Holden and lawmakers about the situation and has urged them to develop an economic blueprint to turn things around. Click here to view the complete report.