Mesirow Financial - Diane Swonk

Diane Swonk's Media Placements

■	CNNMoney.com, Dec 29, 2009, "Beware the big winners of 2009" – "This is a modest recovery relative to historical norms, but the economy is on the mend." Chief Economist Diane Swonk shares her market pick for 2010 in a CNNMoney.com interview. "Technology is going to be big as I really think there will be increased spending on computers and other equipment."
■	Reuters, Dec 29, 2009, "Special Report: America's route to recovery" – Chief Economist Diane Swonk was recently interviewed for a Reuters special report on the economic recovery, which was syndicated throughout the country. "America's greatest ability has always been its capacity to reinvent itself," said Swonk. "We may be able to emerge stronger and better, to the possible anger and envy of some parts of the world."
■	Detroit Free Press, Dec 27, 2009, "Economists have reasons for optimism on outlook" – Quoted in the Detroit Free Press, Chief Economist Diane Swonk said that economists and others often end up UNDER-estimating — not OVER-estimating — recoveries. So while the jobless rate continues to be a lagging indicator — and miserably high — some like Swonk see reasons for optimism. Even though Swonk's optimistic about the economic recovery, she said she expects the U.S. jobless rate to end up higher than 9 percent at the end of 2010. And that's one forecast, Swonk said, that she'd love to be wrong.
■	CNBC, Dec 22, 2009, "The Call" – Chief Economist Diane Swonk visits CNBC The Call to discuss whether, overall, the economy is recovering.
■	msnbc.com, Dec 21, 2009, "Economists see no need for more stimulus" – Chief Economist Diane Swonk participated in the seventh annual installment of msnbc.com's year-end economic roundtable. "Although the risk of a double-dip recession is still significant, it is not the most likely scenario," Swonk said. "Moreover, there are no silver bullets when it comes to fueling employment. I think our efforts would prove better if focused on improving the health of the credit market, most notably banks, as they are now the only game in town for many consumers and small businesses." Swonk was runner-up in forecasting accuracy on msnbc.com's 2009 panel.
■	Fox Business Network, Dec 16, 2009, "Fox Business News at 1 pm" – Chief Economist Diane Swonk joins David Asman and Liz Claman discussing Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke's confirmation to a second term, and the wisdom of money being spent by Congress as 2009 winds down.
■	moneynews.com, Dec 16, 2009, "Swonk Credit Crunch Is Strangling Recovery" – The “headwinds” associated with the credit crunch will linger and limit the degree to which the U.S. economy can recover from the recession, says Diane Swonk, chief economist. “We should be at 6 percent growth, rather than 3 percent,” she writes in Mesirow Financial's annual economic outlook. “The economy surged at a 7.7 percent rate for six consecutive quarters as it emerged from the recession of the early 1980s.” For the next year, Swonk says, the U.S. economy will continue to grow, but only tepidly.
■	CNBC, Dec 14, 2009, "The Call" – Diane Swonk, chief economist at Mesirow Financial, and the CNBC news team debate whether Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke deserves another term.
■	Kiplinger.com, Dec 11, 2009, "What's in store for the next decade?" – Diane Swonk, chief economist, tells Kiplinger that consumers may be entering an era in which they have no choice but to spend within their means, mainly because of reduced home-equity borrowing and a contraction in credit-card use. That means consumer spending will stay sluggish by historical norms. Swonk sees spending rising by only 2.4% in 2010, versus the 5%-plus increases during the go-go years of the 1990s.
■	Chicago Sun-Times Online, Dec 05, 2009, "Unemployment report leaves experts optimistic" – Remarking on the latest unemployment report, which revealed the nation's jobless rate unexpectedly slid in November and job losses sharply declined, Chief Economist Diane Swonk says, "the trend is in the right direction." Swonk adds, "Don't pop any champagne corks, but it might be worth cracking a beer over."
■	National Public Radio (NPR) Online, Nov 25, 2009, "Spending Up Going Into Holiday Shopping Season" – Chief Economist Diane Swonk says that the economy is growing. But she predicts that consumers will spend cautiously on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving and the traditional start of the holiday shopping season.
■	Associated Press (AP), Nov 23, 2009, "Tax credit gives home sales best boost in decade" – "I wouldn't want to bet the house on housing, really, in terms of the strength of the U.S. economy going forward," said Diane Swonk, chief economist, as quoted in USA Today Online.
■	Cable News Network (CNN), Nov 21, 2009, "Your $$$$$" – Chief Economist Diane Swonk joins CNN's Ali Velshi from the floor of the Chicago Board of Trade, to discuss small business, China, the national debt and jobs.
■	Finance and Commerce, Nov 19, 2009, "Stock market gains aren't reflected in job market" – Chief Economist Diane Swonk says that the credit crisis has changed the dynamic of the recovery. Swonk says that large companies that relied on commercial-paper borrowing to finance payrolls have to keep more cash on hand, while tighter bank-lending standards are crimping expansion plans for small companies. “It's hard to get a small-business loan; we're still talking about tightening credit conditions in the sector that creates the most jobs,” she adds. “This is a recovery that is very different, inhibited by the role that credit plays.”
■	Money Magazine/CNN Money.com, Nov 10, 2009, "Make money in 2010: The economy" – Answering the key question: Will [the Fed] continue its efforts to keep short-term interest rates low and get credit flowing, Chief Economist Diane Swonk says yes, noting, "The Fed will do everything in its power to prevent another recession. And they're the ones with the bazookas."
■	USA Today, Nov 02, 2009, "Quarterly Economic Survey" – Chief Economist Diane Swonk was one of 46 top economists who participated in USA Today's economic survey, which was conducted Oct. 22-28. The results - Median estimates through Q4 2010 - were published today by USA Today.
■	Yahoo! News, Nov 02, 2009, "Obama praised on economy, but unemployment remains (AFP)" – Chief Economist Diane Swonk said that one early problem for Obama was that the economy was headed toward an abyss after he was elected in November but before he assumed office in January. "Much of the stimulus plan was not written by the Obama administration, it was written by Congress and it was not as well targeted as it could have been," she said in an AFP story run in Yahoo! News, among other outlets. Swonk noted that Obama's inability to break partisanship in Congress has "continued to hurt the economy," but the quickly enacted stimulus in February helped put the economy on a recovery track. "There's no question that the fact that we are seeing positive growth has a lot to do with the stimulus and the stabilization of the banking system," she concluded.
■	Chicago Tribune, Oct 30, 2009, "Losing streak ends" – The Chicago Tribune reports that observers say the trend could help such Illinois firms as Peoria-based Caterpillar Inc. and Moline-based Deere & Co., both of which recently announced plans to recall some laid-off workers. Chief Economist Diane Swonk says that if the region's exporting manufacturers see business pick up, "it could be an important offset to the continuing struggles in the auto industry." She adds that locally, the commercial real estate market "is more of an Achilles' heel than in other parts of the country."
■	The Daily Press - Online, Oct 30, 2009, "Economy swings into growth mode, but depth of recovery in doubt" – Diane Swonk, chief economist, says that while retail spending has come back a bit, it remains bargain-oriented. "The high end on Michigan Avenue is still struggling."
■	CNBC - The Call, Oct 29, 2009, "Beginning of an Actual Economic Recovery?" – Appearing on CNBC's The Call, Chief Economist Diane Swonk comments on whether we're seeing the beginning of an economic recovery. Swonk says, "The question is how sustainable is it and how strong will it be." "It's still a depressing economy, but it ain't a depression and we are now in for a rocky recovery," she predicts.
■	WTTW-Channel 11 Jim Lehrer NewsHour, Oct 29, 2009, "Economy Shows New Signs of Growth, but Jobs Still Lag" – Chief Economist Diane Swonk comments on the third quarter economic expansion, particularly related to exports: "...all of that is feeding into profits in this region, not a lot of jobs, but, eventually, those profits come right through Chicago's financial services center, which is very important to us here in Chicago." Swonk adds, "And that will eventually create some jobs."
■	CNN, Oct 04, 2009, "In the Money" – "My view is that keeping the job you have is paramount," advises Chief Economist Diane Swonk in an interview on CNN's In the Money. "It means...taking the cuts in compensation and staying out there. This is not an easy time and not a time to be demanding," continues Swonk. "I know that's not easy but that would be my biggest emphasis...if you do have a job, you're one of the lucky ones."
■	Economictimes, Sep 06, 2009, "Did Bernanke Save U.S. from Crisis?" – Quoted in Economictimes regarding Fed Chairman Ben Benanke's role at the height of the economic crisis, Diane Swonk, chief economist, said that the Fed and Bernanke "performed unbelievably well in the height of the crisis." She added, "He reacted so quickly, he was doing things creatively. Once Lehman went there was nowhere to go but down, the question was how far we were going to fall."
■	CNN - The Situation Room, Sep 03, 2009, "Joe Biden Talks Up the Economy" – Appearing on a CNN story about the effectiveness of the President's economic plan, Chief Economist Diane Swonk predicted, "We're talking about higher unemployment, rising unemployment right through the mid part of 2010, and then, maybe, hopefully, being able to bring it down a bit by the end of the year. "
■	Washington Post - Online, Aug 27, 2009, "Obama Picks Bernanke for Second Term as Federal Reserve Chairman" – Reacting to the reappointment of Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke, Chief Economist Diane Swonk comments, "The next big challenge will be maintaining the Fed's independence and credibility after everything Bernanke has done to support the economy. That credibility would be even more threatened if someone closer to the administration was put in."
■	Chicago Sun-Times, Aug 22, 2009, "SEC sounds rare investor alarm" – In an interview with Tech Ticker as reported by the Chicago Sun-Times, Chief Economist Diane Swonk comments on last's weeks SEC warning to investors about exchange-traded funds. "At the start of the credit crisis, many investors, analysts, economists, policymakers, and most of all CEOs, were in denial about their ability to manage the risks or even the risks they'd even taken. There was some ignorance out there as well. And some lying..." Swonk adds, "The really disturbing part is CEOs are still denying the degree to which they played a role in this situation and how their own actions compounded the crisis."
■	Fox News, Aug 22, 2009, "A Report by an Economist and Researcher at the Federal Reserve Bank in Kansas City" – Commenting on a recent unemployment forecast, Chief Economist Diane Swonk said, "This is the exact debate that's going on in economics today. Because we have a severe recession, will we get a nice bounce? Or are we stuck in a period of slow, muted recovery, particularly in the labor market? And I tend to agree with the authors that we come out of this struggling in a rocky recovery way."
■	Voice of America, Aug 20, 2009, "Economic Recovery Elusive" – "We're still running at confidence levels that are consistent with the worst of the recessions of the early 1980's," Chief Economist Diane Swonk tells Voice of America. "Consumer spending just isn't there."
■	Yahoo! Finance and Yahoo! News, Aug 20, 2009, "Tech Ticker Posts" – Road to recovery "very rocky," but Dow will hit 10,000 next year, predicts Chief Economist Diane Swonk as quoted by Peter Gorenstein on Yahoo! Finance and Yahoo! News, among others.
■	CBS Evening News, Aug 18, 2009, "Cash for Clunkers Program" – "It's one of the main reasons we actually will see positive growth in the second half of 2009," comments Diane Swonk, chief economist on the "Cash for Clunkers" program. "Of course demand is going to go down when people aren't going to be able to get the vehicles that they want out of the dealers," she tells CBS Evening News.
■	World News with Charles Gibson - ABC News Network, Aug 17, 2009, "Caution signs. Stocks fall amid new concerns that consumers aren't spending enough to pull the economy out of recession." – Joining ABC's World News Tonight discussing the drag in back-to-school sales and other consumer spending, Chief Economist Diane Swonk reports, "We're still running at confidence levels that are consistent with the worst of the recessions of the early 1980's. Even with the cash of clunkers program in July, we had a decline in overall consumer spending."
■	CNN - Lou Dobbs Tonight, Aug 12, 2009, "Recovery Ahead" – Discussing job gains on CNN's Lou Dobbs Tonight, Chief Economist Diane Swonk predicts, "They won't be strong at first. But even any sign of job gains along with people's 401(k)s is looking a little better. That will make us feel a little better about the economy. But at the end of the day we're still talking about confidence in the U.S. economy that's come from the edge of the abyss to the recession lows we saw in 1981 and '82."
■	Wall Street Journal, Aug 11, 2009, "Economists Call for Bernanke to Stay, Say Recession Is Over" – "Continuity is critical as we emerge from this crisis," Chief Economist Diane Swonk told the Wall Street Journal regarding the January 2010 end of Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke's 4-year term. "Otherwise, we could slip back in again. Bernanke is the best suited to undo what has been done when the time comes."
■	PBS - NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, Aug 09, 2009, "Surprise Dip in Unemployment Fuels Recovery Hopes" – Commenting on the lower-than-expected job loss numbers this week, Chief Economist Diane Swonk told PBS NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, "Certainly better than expected. We also saw an increase in the hours worked, which is one of those big precursors to hiring. Firms are much more likely to take the employees they have and work them longer hours before they actually make that commitment to actually hiring workers." "The other good news in the data was an increase in wages. That was really reflective in part on the higher minimum wage and a bounce-back from some of the weakest wage numbers we've seen in the post-World War II period, added Swonk.
■	CBS moneywatch.com, Aug 06, 2009, "Economist Diane Swonk: What?s Next for the Markets?" – In her recent interview with CBS moneywatch.com, Chief Economist Diane Swonk discusses whether she thinks the market’s recent rally is sustainable, which market sectors look good and which don’t, and what could derail a recovery.
■	Detroit Free Press, Aug 02, 2009, "Credit Crisis Shows Signs of Easing" – "Even though we're not in a freefall crisis mode, we're still in a crunch," cautions Chief Economist Diane Swonk in the Detroit Free Press, responding to second quarter signs of easing of the credit crisis.
■	New York Times - Online, Jul 31, 2009, "U.S. Economy Shrank Less Than Expected in Quarter" – "We're in a deep hole, and now we've got to dig ourselves out of it, which is a very difficult task," Diane Swonk, chief economist, said in the New York Times, reacting to slowing declines and some stabilization in the economy in the second quarter.
■	ABC 7 - Chicago's WLS Online, Jul 29, 2009, "Cash for Clunkers a Boon for Chicago-area Dealers" – In a story by ABC 7's Stacy Baca on the Cash for Clunkers program, Chief Economist Diane Swonk warns, "It may be a bridge. You hope it's a bridge, but on the other side of it you need something to fundamentally change. What fundamentally needs to change is we need to start generating jobs. Hopefully, that will start happening by the end of the year."
■	CNBC - The Kudlow Report, Jul 28, 2009, "Has Housing Finally Bottomed?" – "The direction's right. We're finally moving up and we're moving up more rapidly than some had hoped, and that's good news," says Chief Economist Diane Swonk on CNBC's The Kudlow Report.
■	ABC World News Tonight with Charles Gibson, Jul 27, 2009, "New Home Sales" – "This has been a sector of the U.S. economy that's been a drag on the US economy for almost four years now. And the fact that it's moving into the positive territory — that's a significant shift in momentum for the U.S. economy." In an interview with Reporter Chris Bury of ABC World News Tonight, Chief Economist Diane Swonk comments on June housing numbers released today.
■	CNNMoney.com - The Buzz, Jul 27, 2009, "GDP Don't Believe the Hype" – "There has been an abatement of bad news rather than emergence of good news," Diane Swonk, chief economist tells CNNMoney.com's The Buzz. "Stabilization in a deep hole is not something to pop champagne corks over."
■	Reuters UK, Jul 16, 2009, "G7 Economies Set to Grow Timidly" – "We expect the recession to be over during the summer, but constraints on credit availability will mute the strength of the recovery -- we do not see above-trend growth until late 2010," said Chief Economist Diane Swonk, responding to a worldwide Reuter's poll of top economists. "Inflation will remain contained but ... inflation risks outweigh deflation risks after 2010," she added.
■	International Business Times, Jul 15, 2009, "U.S. Companies Shy About Outlook, Sowing Doubts" – "What we're seeing is the absence of negatives rather than the emergence of positives," explains Diane Swonk, chief economist. "We're not getting a sense of momentum, which clouds the earnings picture." Durable goods orders in May, however, were up 1.8 percent, though Swonk said it was unclear whether this meant demand is really coming back or if companies faced with empty shelves are starting to rebuild their inventory, reports International Business Times.
■	CNN: Your Money, Jun 27, 2009, "Reforming Health Care; Where Your Money Should Be Invested Right Now" – "It's not baby boomer centric; it's not centric to any one given demographic. Consumers spend within the context of the incentives they're given and the incentive was to die in debt and, unfortunately, we're all still alive and we owe a lot of debt now." Chief Economist Diane Swonk weighs in during a discussion of where money should be invested right now.
■	Chicago Tribune Online, Jun 27, 2009, "Americans are Saving More, But That's Not Helping Economy" – Responding to government's announcement last week that the savings rate rose to 6.9 percent in May (the highest level in more than 15 years), Chief Economist Diane Swonk comments, "It's a good thing over the longer haul because we need to save to pay back our debt. It's a bad thing right now because it means we're not spending as much as we could to stimulate the economy." Swonk expects the savings rate to reach double digits over the next five years, but she said the rise will be less dramatic after the stimulus is absorbed. "It's not because they've all of a sudden gotten religion on spending," adds Swonk. "People are making different choices, but they're making them because they've been forced to."
■	Chicago Tribune, Jun 25, 2009, "Fed Keeps Interest Rates Unchanged" – As quoted in the Chicago Tribune, Diane Swonk, chief economist, said the market seemed to be getting ahead of itself in looking for an exit strategy from the Fed when the economy was still getting its bearings. "The markets are looking for something the Fed can't deliver right now," she said. "We're in a no-man's land of stabilization. The Fed certainly is going to do everything to keep interest rates low," Swonk said. She adds,"That's the good news. The bad news is that the bond market is worried about interest rates, and people are going to pay the price of higher rates."
■	Los Angeles Times, Jun 25, 2009, "The Economy" – Following the release of a statement by the Fed's Open Market Committee reiterating its pledge to keep the key federal funds rate -- the rate banks charge one another for overnight loans -- between zero and 0.25% for "an extended period," Chief Economist Diane Swonk commented, "Bond investors who were worried about inflation got ahead of themselves in hoping to see the Fed discuss how it might begin to pull back from its expansive policies. The markets are looking for something the Fed can't deliver right now," she said. "We're in a no man's land of stabilization." She added: "The Fed certainly is going to do everything to keep interest rates low. That's the good news. The bad news is that the bond market is worried about interest rates, and people are going to pay the price of higher rates."
■	AP Digital Associated Press - CEO Wire, Jun 23, 2009, "Mesirow Financial Chief Economist Diane Swonk on Bloomberg TV" – Bloomberg's Mark Crumpton interviewed Chief Economist Diane Swonk, discussing the Fed's intentions to not raise interest rates or withdraw liquidity. They also talked about the jobless number and Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke.
■	CNN: American Morning, Jun 18, 2009, "Baby Boomers Generation Cause the Financial Crisis: Slumdog's Dream" – Discussing the possible role of baby boomers in the financial crisis, Diane Swonk, Chief Economist tells CNN's Christine Romans, "It's not baby boomer centric. It's not centric to any one given demographic. Consumers spend within the context of the incentives they are given. And the incentive was to die in debt. And unfortunately, we're all still alive. And we owe a lot of debt now."
■	World News with Charles Gibson - ABC News Network, Jun 18, 2009, "Are Baby Boomers to Blame for the Bad Economy?" – Chief Economist Diane Swonk joined the ABC World News team to discuss whether baby boomers are to blame for the bad economy. "They become very price sensitive," commented Swonk. "They've also become very well-trained to wait for sales. That's not going to change as we come out of this," she explained.
■	NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams - NBC News Network, Jun 13, 2009, "Gas Prices Rise in Time for Summer Driving Season" – In a newscast about rising gas prices with NBC Reporter Sharon Epperson, Chief Economist Diane Swonk comments, "This just adds insult to injury to an economy that's still struggling and consumer balance sheets that are still extremely fragile."
■	Treasury & Risk, Jun 13, 2009, "100 Most Influential People in Finance" – Warning that the post-recession economy will be marked by more regulation, more austerity and a return of inflation, Chief Economist Diane Swonk is named one of Treasury & Risk's 100 Most Influential People in Finance. Swonk sees the U.S. economy returning to modest growth in the second half.