The governor's office in the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas says a garment industry in its death throes is the main reason economic indicators in 2007 were down across the board.
The garment industry was the CNMI's second major industry, which at one point even surpassed the tourism industry in revenues.
The Governor's press secretary, Charles Reyes, has told the Saipan Tribune that previously, the CNMI had two economic legs to stand on - garments and tourism - but now it essentially only has one.
The Department of Commerce released its 4th Economic Indicator Report last Thursday, and it showed that 2007 was one of the worst years in the history of the islands' economy.
Business gross revenue, for instance, dropped 8.6 percent last year to US$1.67 million from the $1.82 million in the period before.
