State leaders are planning to meet for a special session on Friday. But Wednesday, we got a preview of what we can expect in the future. UNLV released its midyear economic outlook for southern Nevada and things are a lot tougher than originally expected.

At the beginning of this year, experts said the economic outlook for southern Nevada wasn't the best, but felt like residents would be able to muddle through. Now with skyrocketing gas prices, the mood has shifted from bad to worse.

UNLV's Center for Business and Economic Research says two areas in particular are hurting our economy more than expected. First, is problems with credit and finance — it's harder for businesses and residents to get approved for loans. Second, no one expected gas prices to go up as high as they have.

The cost of food has also gone up. Businesses are scaling back and people are losing their jobs.

Though he can't give a guarantee, Economics Professor Keith Schwer believes there is some relief in sight, “We do expect that prices will not remain at these high levels once we get past the summer months, and they would be very hard to sustain at this level over the long run.”

Housing is still not doing well in southern Nevada. Home prices continue to drop and sales are still off. But experts believe that once those houses reach a level of affordability, the market will start to pick back up.

Oil prices are also hurting our tourism industry. Airlines have to cut back, which in turn hurts how many visitors come to Las Vegas.

The good news is that experts don't anticipate it will take any longer to see some improvement. They're still saying in late 2009, things should get better as thousands of hotels rooms are expected to open up late in the year. That'll bring hundreds of jobs.

Experts say in the past, more openings has created more demand. It gives visitors new reasons to come to Las Vegas.

Email your comments to Reporter Melissa Duran

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