Like we didn't already know that times are indeed tough. Of the nation's largest metropolitan areas The Poughkeepsie-Newburgh metro regions rated dead last in the United States in economic growth, according to a report by the U.S. Conference of Mayors. According to the Poughkeepsie Journal, the region dropped 1 percent between 2012 and 2013, making it the worst of any of the top 100 metro areas in the country.

The stagnation isn't just confined to the Mid-Hudson Valley region, as Rochester was the second worst, with a decline of 0.8 percent. Buffalo ranked the eighth worst at a negative 0.2 percent, the Poughkeepsie Journal reported

The survey included 363 of the nation's largest metro areas, with 294 showing a GMP increase, and 69 were either flat or declining. The West and the South showed some of the country's biggest turnarounds, where the housing markets are rebounding.

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