Last week, I spent several days in Philadelphia for the Annual Meeting of the National Association for Business Economics (NABE). The event brings together economists from central banks, think tanks, corporations, and universities to assess the state of the global economy. The theme this year was Global Economy in Transition: Finding Opportunity Amid Disruption. Sessions explored the pressures shaping global business and policy: geopolitical instability, shifting trade regimes, monetary divergence, and the disruptive force of technology. There were also discussions of long-term structural issues such as climate risk, labor markets, and the balance of economic power.

The purpose of this gathering, as my dear friend Kent insists, is not to forecast the price of copper next quarter, but to expose the fundamental choices (and their costs) that reshape our financial lives. While a fun and lively gathering, the atmosphere was serious, analytical, and ultimately, pragmatic.