Manufacturing in Arkansas is diverse, ranging from blue jeans to bicycles, though resource industries such as rice processing and woodworking still play a major role.
Earnings of persons employed in Arkansas increased from $35 billion in 1997 to $37 billion in 1998, an increase of 5.1%. The largest industries in 1998 were services, 21.3% of earnings; durable goods manufacturing, 12.5%; and state and local government, 11.7%. Of the industries that accounted for at least 5% of earnings in 1998, the slowest growing from 1997 to 1998 was construction (5.8% of earnings in 1998), which increased 3.5%; the fastest was retail trade (11.0% of earnings in 1998), which increased 7.4%.