The 'AAA' rating on Minnesota's $3.046 billion outstanding GO state bonds has been affirmed. The outlook is stable. The rating reflects the state's: Deep economy, which is diversified among services, trade, and manufacturing; Historically strong financial management systems; and Moderate debt burden with manageable future capital needs. Despite some concentration in the manufacturing sector, which has been slow to rebound, Minnesota's economic diversity, compared with the nation's, enables the state to perform well during economic downturns. Employment and income data grew steadily through the 1990s, fueled by steady population growth. Although the state has also experienced an economic downturn, it was late in feeling the effects relative to the nation; its unemployment rate remained fairly low at 4.4 through 2002%.
