"The Holy Faith"
Economy
New Mexico is a comparatively poor state, ranking among the lowest in the country in per capita income. About one-half of its economy is based on the service sector, while much of the remainder is centred on extractive industries (mining and oil production). Relying heavily on the export of raw materials and on federal expenditures for programs of no certain permanence, New Mexico is subject to shifting demands from outside the state. Government spending accounts for nearly one-fourth of the state’s economy.
Agriculture
New Mexico, was described as the greatest concern of the local population as the need for water. The Native Americans and Hispanos were self-sufficient farmers, growing beans, corn (maize), cotton, and squash on the alluvial plain of the Rio Grande. The arid land was best used for pasture, and sheep thrived until well into the 20th century. Americans brought cattle from Texas, and the sale of the cattle and calves accounted for two-thirds of the total income from agriculture. Because water is still scarce, farming techniques have not changed much in present-day New Mexico, and irrigated farming remains the most important form of agriculture. Since the 1990s, milk, sorghum, wheat, hay, chili peppers, and onions have been important agricultural products.
Resources and power
After the American Civil War, gold and silver extraction became more important. The mining brought many settlers and attracted capital during the territorial period but never produced the riches expected. Nonetheless, gold and silver are still found in significant quantities but are mainly recovered as by-products of copper smelting. Copper mining also began in the 19th century, and copper continues to be found in many parts of the state, although most of the ore reserves and production are in Grant County, in the southwestern corner. Iron ore, lead, zinc, manganese, and molybdenum are also mined. New Mexico produces more than four-fifths of U.S. potash and is the country’s leading producer of perlite, a natural glass. The state also traditionally led the country in uranium production, but by the 1990s that had dropped off considerably.
Oil and natural gas account for about half of the state’s income from natural resources. Natural gas is mainly produced in the southeastern corner and in the San Juan basin in the northwest. Boom times in the mines, oil fields, or natural gas fields have often been succeeded by severe economic downturns.
Solar power has become an important source of energy, particularly in cities, while the number of wind turbines and geothermal plants has been increasing throughout the state.
Manufacturing
Food processing, petroleum refining, smelting, and the manufacture of electronic components, communications equipment, furniture, and construction materials are leading industrial activities. They are mostly centred in the Albuquerque area.
New Mexico is also known as a leader in the high-technology industries. Nuclear weapons and energy research is carried on at the Los Alamos National Laboratory and the Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque. An offshoot of this is the private manufacturing of such products as ordnance, electronic equipment, and precision instruments.