"Strong U.S. economic growth is helping revive New Jersey's economy." This is the latest assessment from the Wells Fargo Securities Economics Group, which periodically evaluates the economic outlook of a particular state.

The report does note that New Jersey is still not performing as well as the U.S. as a whole but that "the gap has narrowed and overall growth is much stronger than it was a year earlier." Challenges the state had to overcome on this side of the recession, including an outflow of residents and a housing market still burdened with delinquencies and foreclosures, slowed the start of the recovery.

On the plus side, the report notes the sizable population of educated households, the extensive freight network and profusion of warehouses, and a likely strengthening of the manufacturing and tourism industry. Encouraging numbers include a 2.5% rise in real GDP growth year-over-year, a 4.2% unemployment rate, the lowest since 2007 and a 1.6% gain in wages this year.