The economy of the Providence-Fall River-New Bedford metropolitan area was among the 20 weakest performing in the nation as of March 31, according to a study issued on Wednesday by the Brookings Institution, a nonprofit public-policy organization based in Washington, D.C.

The study examined unemployment, home prices, foreclosure rates and other economic indicators for each of the nation’s 100 largest metropolitan areas, focusing on data for March.

“No metro area has been immune from the current economic downturn,” the survey said.

But some areas did worse than others.

The Providence metro market — an area made up of several communities, including Providence plus Fall River and New Bedford, Mass. — ranked 89th out of 100.

Providence metro was the only New England area to have ranked among the 20 weakest, according to the survey.

Howard Wial, an economist and fellow at the Brookings Institution, said the Providence area ranked low partly because “the economy has contracted more than the national average,” and because of its high unemployment rate and drop in housing prices, plus other factors.

Governor Carcieri said in an interview at the State House on Tuesday that the study’s findings were not surprising, given the region’s unemployment rate and “unsustainable price speculation” in the housing market, among other factors.

Leonard Lardaro, professor of economics at the University of Rhode Island, said the study’s findings are “very sad, but not entirely surprising.”

Lardaro, who publishes a report that tracks the Rhode Island economy based on a number of key indicators, said that “Providence has been doing badly.”

He also said that some Southeastern Massachusetts communities, such as Fall River and New Bedford, have also had high unemployment rates.

“They have not been doing well, unfortunately. They have not been doing well for quite some time now,” he said.

Following are some highlights of the survey:

•For its 11.3-percent unemployment rate in March 2009, the Providence-Fall River-New Bedford metro market ranked 87th out of 100 metro areas nationwide.

•All of the markets lost jobs, from their peaks to March 31, but the Providence-area market was among the worst performing, showing a 5.4-percent drop in employment during the period, ranking Providence 87th.

•For each market, the study looked at what it called “gross metropolitan product” –– the total value of all goods and services produced in each metro area. All 100 experienced a decline from their pre-recession peak, the study found. The Providence area ranked 93rd. From peak to the end of March, the Providence-area market’s GDP fell 5.9 percent.

•The study looked at housing prices from March 31, 2008, to March 31, 2009. The Providence-area market’s average price fell 6 percent during the period, ranking the market 74th.

ndowning@projo.com