According to a project at Arkansas Tech University (ATU), Benton showed the “greatest upward mobility,” in August 2016, out of the 20 Arkansas cities it tracks. The Arkansas Tech Business Index (ATBI) is a project created by the Arkansas Tech University College of Business. The ATBI looks at economic activity in these 20 cities, including labor, housing market, construction and retail sales.
A city rating better than 100 indicates that it’s doing better than the state average. Benton moved up 2.19 points in August to be at 102.11 for the month and land it in the top four cities, along with Bentonville, Fayetteville, Springdale and Mountain Home.
Click the following link to see the article from ATU for more details and numbers. http://www.arkansastechnews.com/community/saline-county-community-moves-up-on-atbi/