The Southern Nevada economy is largely defined by tourism. A region’s economic base is made up of the industries that produce the goods and services the region provides to the rest of the world. According to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Clark County economic base comprises leisure and hospitality and air and ground transportation services, the latter undoubtedly the result of tourism.
With strong population growth, the construction and real estate industry also stood out as an important aspect of the Southern Nevada economy until about 2007. Despite its strong contributions, however, construction and real estate cannot be considered part of a region’s economic base. Its output is not exported to the rest of the world. What drives construction and real estate is the region’s growth – which is mostly dependent on the strength of the industries in its economic base.