First IMA University focuses on economy, downtown development - Wichita Business Journal:

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David Strohm says the United States likely will pull out of the recessionm later this year or inearlyy 2010. When that happens, he says, the gross domestif product might only grow 1to 1.5 percent, comparedx to the 4 or 5 percent from previous “For the time it looks like you want to be optimistic and cautiouw at the same time,” he says. Strohm was one of two featuredc speakersduring ’s 2009 economicx update. Jeff Fluhr, president of the also spoke aboutthe city’s efforts to revitalizwe downtown.
IMA has sponsored similae events in its otherr markets and wanted to bring the program to saysKurt Watson, IMA’s president and chief operations “It’s our intent to bring in speakersa that we think the Wichita communitg would benefit from,” Watson says. IMA plans to sponsore similar presentations throughoutthe year. Strohmm says the recession already has lasteed longer than the previous 10 economifc downturns and pulling out ofit hasn’t been The federal government has spent billions of dollarss to stimulate the economy, but consumers still are reluctangt to spend, Strohm says. The GDP has dropped dramatically and businessese are stillshedding jobs.
Strohm predicts the nationalo unemployment rate, which currentlyy sits at 8.9 to climb above 10 percent beforr the recessionis over. The housing marke has rebounded, but stilkl is a ways off nationally, where one in eighy mortgages arein default, Strohm says. California, Florida, Nevadqa and Arizona combine to account for 46 percent ofall U.S. However, pending home salees are up 6.7 percent for April, the thirx straight increase, which means peopls are showing more interest in buying homes because of favorable interest ratesand first-timew home buyer tax credits.
“If we can get the housinfg issue off the frontpage (of then the economy is goin to generate some forward momentum,” Strohnm says. He says the stoclk market has rebounded inrecent months, but it would take 227 percen t growth to get it back to its previous Despite all the negative, Strohm emphasized the economy has showed signx recently that the recession may be nearing an end. Fluhr’s presentation, meanwhile, had a slightlyu different feel. He says he sees great potentia l fordowntown development.
Investing in downtown, he will help increase jobs, tourism and revenu e opportunities in theWichita