Top Indiana University experts will deliver their 2015 forecasts for local, state, national, and global economies and financial markets on Wednesday, Nov. 12 at Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus (IUPUC).

The forecasts are part of Indiana University’s annual Economic Outlook Breakfast series held each year on IU campuses across the state.

Dr. Frank Wadsworth, head of the Division of Business at IUPUC, invites residents of south-central Indiana to attend. “Business owners and executives, municipal officials, civic leaders, and citizens throughout southeastern Indiana who are interested in U.S. and global economic issues are welcome to join us.”  

The four panelists, each of whom is recognized for expertise in identifying new and emerging financial trends, will discuss their predictions for the top domestic and international economic issues business and government leaders can expect in next year. They include:

• U.S. and Global Outlook: Dr. Ellie Mafi-Kreft
  Elli Mafi-Kreft is the Clinical Assistant Professor of Business Economics and Public Policy at the Kelley School of Business. Upon coming to the United States from her home country of France, Mafi-Kreft received her B.S. (1999), M.A. (2002), and Ph.D. (2003) from West Virginia University in Morgantown, WV. She has been teaching at the Kelley School of Business since 2006 and she researches monetary institutions and the relationship among business, government, and nonprofits.

• STATE OUTLOOK: Dr. Robert Jennings   
  Robert Jennings is the Gregg T. and Judith A. Summerville professor of finance and chair of the Department of Finance in the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University. He received a B.S.B.A. and M.B.A. from the University of Tulsa in 1973 and 1974, respectively.  He worked in the Operations Research Division of Conoco as an analyst from 1974 through 1976 and received his Ph.D. in business from the University of Texas-Austin in 1981. He has been on the faculty of Indiana University since 1980, and previously served as finance department chair from 1996-2000 and 2003-2006. Jennings is a member of the Indiana University Investment Committee and was a member of Nasdaq’s Economic Advisory Board for 2002-04. He also was the Visiting Economist at the New York Stock Exchange for the 2000-01 academic year and was a Visiting Associate Professor of Finance in 1992 at the University of Chicago. He currently is Associate Editor of the Journal of Financial Markets and the Journal of Financial Research.

• Financial Markets Outlook: Dr. Jerry Conover
  Jerry Conover directs the Indiana Business Research Center at Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business. Conover has played leading roles in state, regional and national economic development initiatives for more than two decades, bringing university research expertise to bear in advancing regional economies. He guides IBRC initiatives ranging from innovative tools and analysis for economic development throughout the nation, to illuminating pathways through Indiana’s talent pipeline connecting education to in-demand jobs. Conover earned doctoral degrees in psychology and business administration at the University of Missouri and his bachelor’s degree at the University of Michigan. Prior to coming to IU, he conducted business research at the University of Arizona and Northern Arizona University, where he was also professor of marketing and director of the MBA Program.

• LOCAL OUTLOOK: Dr. Ryan Brewer
  Dr. Brewer’s work has been highlighted on CNN, CNBC, and Inside Indiana Business with Gerry Dick and he has been published in the Wall Street Journal, the Indianapolis Business Journal, and the Chronicle of Higher Education in addition to academic literature and journals. A frequent expert witness on financial matters in federal and state courts, Brewer is an assistant professor of finance at IUPUC. 

The event, sponsored by Centra Credit Union and co-hosted by the Columbus Area Chamber of Commerce and the Division of Business at IUPUC, will begin at 7:30 a.m. with a continental breakfast just outside the Columbus Learning Center Auditorium & Lecture Hall at 4555 Central Avenue.

The panel discussion will begin at 8 a.m. Attendees will have an opportunity to ask questions after the presentations. They can also participate via text messaging in an ongoing poll on various economic issues.

Wadsworth, a professor of marketing and international studies at IUPUC, will serve as the event moderator. His research and professional interests focus on franchising and international corruption. “The statewide Economic Outlook Breakfast series is one of Indiana University’s most widely anticipated and attended events,” Wadsworth reported.  “Many Hoosiers are interested in the IU expert forecasts for the coming year in the global, U.S. states, and local markets.”

Much of the data and work that comprises the annual outlooks is compiled and interpreted by the Indiana Business Research Center (IBRC), which is a unit of the Kelley School of Business. The IBRC maintains statistics and other information used by key state and national decision- and policy-makers.

The cost to attend is $15. Parking near the Columbus Learning Center is free. Attendees should register online at http://columbusarea.chambermaster.com/events or call 812.379.4457 to register by phone.