Oct. 2--The Wichita-area economy will continue to shrink and shed jobs in 2010, according to a forecast unveiled Thursday by Wichita State University.

The area is projected to lose 3,550 jobs next year, especially in manufacturing, according to WSU's Center for Economic Development and Business Research.

The forecast was the centerpiece of the 30th annual Wichita Area Economic Outlook Conference held Thursday morning at Century II. More than 600 people attended.

The forecast might come across as gloomy, conceded center director Jeremy Hill, but Wichita hadn't felt the economic crisis as deeply as the rest of the country until recently.

"We are into the worst part of the cycle, where the U.S. was six months ago," Hill said. "And recovery will be slow."

Other pieces of the conference included forecasts for the housing industry, the energy sector and the national economy.

The forecast is considerably different than last year's, which predicted 6,100 new jobs.

It was delivered last October, a few weeks after the financial panic hit Wall Street and a few weeks before the first large-scale aircraft layoffs were announced.

That prediction for 2009 was lowered to 1,600 more jobs in November. In reality, 2009 has been much worse than the center forecast, with an estimated loss of 5,000 jobs.

People at the conference said they appreciated the 2010 forecast, despite the outlook.

"I thought there was lot of positive news, such as that housing has about leveled off," said Jeff Lucke, an accountant.

Breakdown by sector

Here's a look at each sector:

Manufacturing -- down 3,850 jobs.

The bulk of this will be at the durable goods plants, particularly aircraft, Hill said.

Sales for corporate jets reached an all-time high in late 2008 and then plunged as companies worldwide frantically cut costs to cope with the recession.

Hill said the high number of used corporate jets for sale -- an indication of weak demand for new jets -- hit a peak in July and has come down only slightly since then.

He said he expects further job cuts as new orders continue to be slow and companies work through their backlog of orders.

Commercial aircraft construction is expected to dip in 2010 as airlines react to declining air traffic and volatile fuel prices.

Oil and gas, construction -- down 275 jobs.

The bulk of the job losses will come in the construction industry as the number of new houses and commercial buildings will remain down.

Wholesale trade -- down 100 jobs.

Many companies in the wholesale category are also manufacturers.