ECON-versations with NABE

Why do official economic statistics get revised—and why do those revisions sometimes change the story of the economy?

In this episode of ECON-versations with NABE, we revisit a timely and much-discussed webinar that originally aired live on January 29, 2026, examining revisions to U.S. economic data from the BLS, BEA, and Census Bureau. Over the past year, revisions have made headlines for materially reshaping our understanding of growth, inflation, and labor market conditions.

Our panel digs into why revisions happen, how unusual recent revisions have been, what they reveal about the underlying state of the economy, and what business economists—and economic media—should keep in mind when interpreting early data releases versus subsequent updates.

Speakers

• David Wilcox, Senior Fellow, Peterson Institute for International Economics; Director of U.S. Economic Research, Bloomberg Economics

• Dean Croushore, Professor of Economics and Rigsby Fellow, University of Richmond

Moderator: Jed Kolko, Co-Chair, NABE Data Analytics & Statistics Roundtable; Senior Fellow, Peterson Institute for International Economics; Senior Advisor, JPMC Institute

Webinar Replay | January 27, 2026

In this episode, NABE Business Conditions Survey analysts break down the latest survey results and respond to audience questions, offering timely insights into business conditions, risks, and the near-term outlook across industries.

Featured Speakers:

• Martha Moore, CBE — Chief Economist and Managing Director, Economics and Statistics, American Chemistry Council

• Lester Jones, CBE — Vice President of Analytics and Chief Economist, National Beer Wholesalers Association

• Courtney Shupert — Economist, MacroPolicy Perspectives LLC

The January 2026 National Association for Business Economics Business Conditions Survey reflects responses from 50 NABE members collected January 5–9, 2026. The report captures fourth-quarter 2025 business conditions and provides a forward-looking view of economic activity in the months ahead.
👉 View the public summary here.

A complete archive of NABE surveys—including full reports and detailed tabulation files—is available exclusively to NABE members at NABE.com/Surveys. Not a member yet? Visit NABE.com/Join to unlock access to this essential resource.

In this episode of The Inflation Brief from ECON-versations with NABE, hosts Greg Daco and Laura Rosner Warburton unpack the December CPI report, explaining why headline and core inflation came in below expectations and what unusual price moves—from appliances to wireless services—may be signaling about tariff pass-through. They explore the outlook for goods and shelter inflation, the growing divergence between CPI and PCE measures, and what still-murky data mean for the Federal Reserve’s rate path, including expectations for potential cuts in 2026.

Join leading economists and policymakers at the 42nd Annual NABE Economic Policy Conference, February 22-24, in Washington, D.C. Organized around the theme, The Great Realignment: Navigating AI, Demographic, and Geoeconomic Shifts, the conference offers a forward-looking examination of the forces reshaping the global economy. From rapid advances in AI to demographic change and rising geoeconomic tensions, attendees will gain timely insights and practical strategies for fostering resilient, inclusive growth in an increasingly complex world. Explore the full program featuring headliners Christine Lagarde, Christopher Waller, Lisa Cook, Daron Acemoglu, Charlie Cook, and more.

In this episode of The Labor Brief from ECON-versations with NABE, hosts Ellen Zentner and Julia Coronado unpack a payroll report that signals slower job gains and a cooling labor market. They explore how structural forces—tight immigration, an aging workforce, and shifting retirement decisions—are reshaping labor supply, while productivity remains surprisingly strong. The conversation also dives into uneven hiring across sectors, the growing divide between higher- and lower-income consumers, and what the latest data mean for Federal Reserve rate-cut expectations in the months ahead.

Join leading economists and policymakers at the 42nd Annual NABE Economic Policy Conference, February 22–24 in Washington, D.C. Organized around the theme The Great Realignment: Navigating AI, Demographic, and Geoeconomic Shifts, the conference offers a forward-looking examination of the forces reshaping the global economy. From rapid advances in AI to demographic change and rising geoeconomic tensions, attendees will gain timely insights and practical strategies for fostering resilient, inclusive growth in an increasingly complex world. Explore the full program featuring headliners Christine Lagarde, Christopher Waller, Lisa Cook, Daron Acemoglu, Charlie Cook, and more.

The global economy is at a pivotal crossroads—and the choices policymakers make now could shape growth for years to come. Recorded live on January 3, 2026, this NABE-sponsored session from ASSA 2026 brings together top economic leaders to explore a world marked by uneven recoveries, diverging inflation paths, and increasingly fragmented policy responses. The panel features Laura Alfaro, Chief Economist and Economic Counselor of the Inter-American Development Bank, Anna Paulson, President and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, Diane Swonk, CBE, Chief Economist at KPMG, and Nela Richardson, NABE Vice President and Chief Economist at ADP. The discussion tackles the forces driving global divergence—from geopolitics to supply chains—and the risks looming over the next phase of the world economy. A timely and wide-ranging conversation for anyone tracking global growth, policy tradeoffs, and economic uncertainty.

• Alfaro's Slides
• Richardson's Slides

NABE⁠ is the premier professional association for business economists and others who use economics in the workplace. Since 1959, NABE has attracted the most prominent figures in economics, business, and academia to its membership with highly-regarded conferences, educational and career development offerings, industry surveys, and its unrivaled networking opportunities. Past presidents of NABE include former Chairman of the Board of Governors for the Federal Reserve System, Alan Greenspan, several former Federal Reserve Governors, and other senior business leaders.

To learn more, please visit ⁠NABE.com⁠. To join our membership and unlock access to a powerful professional community and a wide range of resources designed to support career growth and economic insight, please visit ⁠NABE.com/Join⁠.

As AI tools increasingly shape decisions across markets and organizations, who is really in charge—the human or the algorithm? Recorded live on January 3, 2026, this high-energy, NABE-sponsored session from ASSA 2026 brings together leading economists and industry practitioners to unpack how decision-making authority is shifting as AI enters areas like credit allocation, pricing, and hiring. The panel features Chiara Farronato of Harvard Business School, Peter McCrory of Anthropic, Robert Seamans of New York University Stern School of Business, Sonia Jaffe of Microsoft, and Anton Korinek of University of Virginia. Moderated by Andrea Guglielmo of Airbnb, the conversation dives into incentives, bias, and institutional design when algorithms “hold the pen.” A must-listen for anyone thinking about economic agency, accountability, and the real-world stakes of AI-driven decision-making.

• Farronato Slides
• McCrory Slides
• Seamans Slides
• Jaffee Slides
• Korinek Slides

NABE is the premier professional association for business economists and others who use economics in the workplace. Since 1959, NABE has attracted the most prominent figures in economics, business, and academia to its membership with highly-regarded conferences, educational and career development offerings, industry surveys, and its unrivaled networking opportunities. Past presidents of NABE include former Chairman of the Board of Governors for the Federal Reserve System, Alan Greenspan, several former Federal Reserve Governors, and other senior business leaders.

To learn more, please visit NABE.com. To join our membership and unlock access to a powerful professional community and a wide range of resources designed to support career growth and economic insight, please visit NABE.com/Join.

In this episode of The Labor Brief from ECON-versations with NABE, former NABE presidents Ellen Zentner and Julia Coronado unpack the latest labor market data and preview the upcoming NABE Economic Policy Conference in Washington, D.C. They explore signs of a cooling labor market, rising unemployment, and what it all means for Federal Reserve policy amid ongoing uncertainty. The conversation also dives into AI’s growing impact on jobs, investment, and economic growth—setting the stage for the key debates policymakers and economists will tackle in the months ahead.

NABE is the premier professional association for business economists and others who use economics in the workplace. Since 1959, NABE has attracted the most prominent figures in economics, business, and academia to its membership with highly-regarded conferences, educational and career development offerings, industry surveys, and its unrivaled networking opportunities. Past presidents of NABE include former Chairman of the Board of Governors for the Federal Reserve System, Alan Greenspan, several former Federal Reserve Governors, and other senior business leaders.

To learn more, please visit NABE.com. To join our membership and unlock access to a powerful professional community and a wide range of resources designed to support career growth and economic insight, please visit NABE.com/Join.

In this episode, hosts Greg Daco and Laura Rosner-Warburton unpack the October and November CPI reports, revealing how the prolonged government shutdown disrupted data collection and introduced downward biases through carry-forward imputations—especially in shelter costs. They discuss what signals still cut through the noise, from early tariff pass-through to underlying services and vehicle price trends, and debate the outlook for PCE inflation in 2026. The conversation closes with a call for stronger funding and modernization of U.S. statistical agencies to ensure more reliable inflation data going forward.

NABE is the premier professional association for business economists and others who use economics in the workplace. Since 1959, NABE has attracted the most prominent figures in economics, business, and academia to its membership with highly-regarded conferences, educational and career development offerings, industry surveys, and its unrivaled networking opportunities. Past presidents of NABE include former Chairman of the Board of Governors for the Federal Reserve System, Alan Greenspan, several former Federal Reserve Governors, and other senior business leaders.

To learn more, please visit NABE.com. To join our membership and unlock access to a powerful professional community and a wide range of resources designed to support career growth and economic insight, please visit NABE.com/Join.

AI adoption has surged in 2025, rapidly shifting from experimental pilots to everyday practice. But how is this new general-purpose technology actually being used by workers and enterprises? In this webinar replay presented by the NABE AI Roundtable, Peter McCrory, Head of Economics at Anthropic, and Harvard Professor David Deming—co-author of How People Use ChatGPT—share real-time evidence and fresh insights from emerging data on AI usage. Together, they explore how AI is reshaping workflows, decision-making, and daily life, offering a grounded look at the realities behind the headline-grabbing hype.

This webinar was held and recorded on November 25, 2025.

NABE is the premier professional association for business economists and others who use economics in the workplace. Since 1959, NABE has attracted the most prominent figures in economics, business, and academia to its membership with highly-regarded conferences, educational and career development offerings, industry surveys, and its unrivaled networking opportunities. Past presidents of NABE include former Chairman of the Board of Governors for the Federal Reserve System, Alan Greenspan, several former Federal Reserve Governors, and other senior business leaders.

Tune in as Outlook Survey Chair Yelena Maleyev, CBE, discusses the latest NABE Outlook Survey results with Survey Analysts Martin Holdrich, Jack Kleinhenz, CBE, and Yelena Shulyatyeva. This webinar was held and recorded on Monday, November 24. To download the full report, please visit NABE.com/Surveys.

The November 2025 NABE Outlook presents the consensus macroeconomic forecast of 42 professional forecasters. The survey—which covers expectations for the remainder of 2025 and for 2026—was conducted November 3–11, 2025. First launched in 1965, the NABE Outlook Survey is one of three signature economic surveys conducted by the National Association for Business Economics (NABE).

The views expressed in this report are those of the panelists and do not necessarily reflect the positions of their organizations. This report may be reproduced in whole or in part with proper citation to NABE.