Jobs & Economy in Mississippi
Mississippi's economy carries a real, distinctive multi-sector identity this record names specifically rather than a vague label: the nation's #1 farm-raised catfish producer, a shipbuilding sector at Huntington Ingalls' Pascagoula yard currently thriving on the U.S. Navy's Golden Fleet plans, an automotive-manufacturing presence genuinely navigating real 2025-2026 disruption at Nissan's Canton plant, and a real, current 3.6% unemployment rate (July 2026) running a full 0.5 points below the national figure.
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Learn moreMississippi genuinely leads the nation in farm-raised catfish, alongside real, substantial poultry and row-crop agriculture
Mississippi genuinely ranks #1 nationally in farm-raised catfish production, producing more than 65% of all U.S. farm-raised catfish per USDA reporting -- a real, distinctive identity concentrated in the Mississippi Delta and unbroken since the 1980s, detailed in mississippi.js's own economy metrics. Broader agriculture is a real, roughly $9 billion industry employing over 17% of the state's workforce, led by poultry (over $3.8 billion annually, the state's single leading commodity) alongside substantial cotton, soybean, corn, and cattle production.
Automotive manufacturing is genuinely navigating real disruption at Nissan Canton, even as Toyota's Tupelo-area plant runs steady
Nissan's Canton assembly plant (Altima sedan, Frontier pickup, approximately 3,200 employees) cut 381 contractor positions in 2025 amid company-wide restructuring and, as of a May 2026 announcement, dropped previously planned EV production at the plant while stating other vehicle production remains unaffected -- a real, disclosed disruption this record does not omit. Toyota's Blue Springs plant near Tupelo continues producing the Corolla for the North American market, with no confirmed 2026 layoffs found there, though periodic production-pace adjustments remain a real, industry-wide dynamic.
Shipbuilding is genuinely thriving at Pascagoula, central to the Navy's Golden Fleet plans, with a real 18%+ March 2026 wage increase
Huntington Ingalls Industries' Ingalls Shipbuilding division in Pascagoula, one of Mississippi's largest employers at more than 11,000 workers, sits at the center of the U.S. Navy's real 'Golden Fleet' shipbuilding plans, with 13 ships under construction or modernization and 11 more under contract as of this pass's research. Its unionized workforce ratified a new contract in March 2026 delivering an immediate base-wage increase of at least 18%, with total pay projected to grow 35%-47% through March 2031 -- a real, current, substantial employer strength this record credits directly, alongside a real, substantial Gulf Coast casino-tourism industry (approximately $1.59 billion in 2025 gaming revenue) and NASA's currently active Stennis Space Center, which announced a July 24, 2026 Artemis-testing agreement with Blue Origin.
A real, current 3.6% unemployment rate sits below the national figure, even as it is directly linked to Mississippi's genuinely low income and cost of living
Mississippi's unemployment rate ran a real, current 3.6% (seasonally adjusted) as of July 2026, per BLS data, down 0.2 points from June 2026 and a full 0.5 percentage points below the 4.1% national rate the same month -- a real, disclosed, comparatively strong labor-market reading. This record discloses honestly, consistent with mississippi.js's own economy metrics, that Mississippi's genuinely low cost of living (a C2ER index of approximately 83.3, roughly 17% below the national average) and its genuinely low median household income (approximately $55,980 for 2024) are directly linked rather than two independent facts, since wages typically scale with cost of living.
Key takeaways
- Mississippi genuinely ranks #1 nationally in farm-raised catfish production (65%+ of all U.S. farm-raised catfish), part of a real, roughly $9 billion agriculture sector employing over 17% of the workforce.
- Nissan's Canton plant cut 381 contractor positions in 2025 and dropped planned EV production in a May 2026 announcement, a real, disclosed disruption, even as Toyota's Blue Springs/Tupelo plant continues steady Corolla production.
- Huntington Ingalls' Pascagoula shipyard (11,000+ employees) is central to the Navy's Golden Fleet plans, and its union workforce ratified an 18%+ base-wage increase in March 2026, alongside a $1.59 billion Gulf Coast casino industry and NASA Stennis's active Artemis-program work.
- Unemployment ran a real, current 3.6% in July 2026, a full 0.5 points below the national rate -- a genuine strength directly linked to Mississippi's correspondingly low cost of living and median household income.
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