California biz reporter Fujii retires

Reed Fujii, a business reporter for the Stockton Record in California, has retired after 24 years at the paper.

Mike Klocke, editor of the Record, wrote on Twitter:

Fujii writes, “Becoming a business reporter in 2000, I saw the dotcom bust send California’s economy into a dive.

“It bounced back in the housing boom of the early 2000s, with San Joaquin County among the hottest of the hot spots.

“It was quite the party but, as we now know, it was an illusion created by fraudulent mortgage lending funded by greed-driven Wall Street investment banks, ending in the global financial crisis and Great Recession.

“Now the regional economy is shaking off the last of a decade-long hangover and again is on the upswing. But this time the growth in business activity and employment seems real, underpinned by the county’s strong highway, rail and maritime transportation network.

“As I close out my career with The Record, here are some observations from 16 years of covering local business and the economy, in no particular order:”

Read more here,