Calling it the Council’s “rapid response programming”, Michael Moskow opened the panel discussion, Economic Recovery: Bullish or Bearish? featuring  Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody’s Analytics , David Hale, a Chicago-based global economist and Nial Booker, CEO of HSBC North America.

The Chicago Council on Global Affairs, co-partnering with the CFA Society of Chicago  convened the session to discuss the current state of the economy.

While acknowledging that there remain challenges to the economy, Zandi expressed optimism noting the way American businesses have dramatically improved their operations since the financial crisis, cutting costs and increasing productivity.  “U.S. companies are making money everywhere,” he said.  “They’ve got their cost structure down and improved their unit labor cost, which is rising in other countries.”  And, he added, companies are in a historically strong cash position, enhancing their global competitive strength.

What an optimal time for companies to get ahead of the Dodd-Frank Act requirements to more actively engage with  shareholders by taking steps now to convey how boards are providing better oversight, more engagement in corporate strategy and greater respect for the shareholders.