JUNEAU -- Alaska had a $49 billion economy last year, with the largest single piece of that coming from oil and mining.
State labor department economist Neal Fried says Alaska also had the highest per-capita gross domestic product, $63,424 in the nation. The U.S. average was $42,429.
The GDP is a measure of goods and services produced.
Fried, in a recent article in the labor department publication "Alaska Economic Trends," said oil and gas represented 25 percent of Alaska's GDP last year. He says this shows how far-reaching an impact that oil has in the state, given direct employment by the oil and gas industry makes up just 4 percent of total employment in the state.
He says the public sector is the second largest contributor after oil, making up 19 percent of the GDP.
Associated Press