Nationally Renowned Economists from Comerica Bank and Stanford University to Discuss Economic Outlook for 2010 for California and U.S. at Jan. 28 Conference in Santa Clara, Calif.

In the first economic conference after the State of the Union Address, Silicon Valley business leaders will hear from Dana Johnson, senior Comerica Bank economist, and Lawrence H. Goulder, chair of the Economics Department at Stanford University

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Comerica Incorporated

Jan 19, 2010, 06:00 ET

SAN JOSE, Calif., Jan. 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Will the U.S. economic recovery continue? When will the jobs picture improve, in the U.S., in California? What is the economic impact of climate change policies?

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These are some of the questions that will be discussed by two of the nation's leading economists on Thursday, Jan. 28, at the Comerica Bank 2010 Economic Forecast Conference in Santa Clara, Calif.

The presentations by Dana Johnson, senior vice president and chief economist at Comerica Bank, and by Lawrence H. Goulder, professor and chair of the economics department at Stanford University, to an expected audience of 500 Silicon Valley business leaders, begin at 8:30 a.m. Jan. 28 at the Santa Clara Convention Center, 5001 Great America Parkway, Santa Clara. The presentations will feature a give-and-talk conversation between the economists, an audience question-and-answer session and networking reception.

"It is more important than ever, as we continue the economic recovery, for business decision-makers to have the benefit of expert economic advice," said J. Michael Fulton, president and CEO of Comerica Bank's Western Market. "That's why we have invited two of the nation's most distinguished economists to share their expertise with Silicon Valley business leaders at our annual economic forecast conference. This analysis of economic trends should help us lay the groundwork for sound business decisions in 2010."

Business leaders from across the Bay Area have been invited to attend this year's Comerica Bank Economic Forecast Conference. The bank's sixth annual economic forecast event begins with a breakfast reception at 7:30 a.m., followed by the program from 8:30 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. KTVU-TV is a co-sponsor of the event, and KTVU morning news anchor and business editor Pam Cook will be moderator for the event.

"The Prospects for a Self-Sustaining Expansion" is the title of Johnson's presentation. Goulder will discuss "Climate Change Policy in California and Beyond." For information about attending the event, go to http://www.comerica.com/econ10 or call 408-556-5931 before 4 p.m. Friday, Jan. 22.

About Comerica Bank

Comerica Incorporated (NYSE: CMA) is a financial services company headquartered in Dallas, Texas, and strategically aligned by three business segments: The Business Bank, The Retail Bank, and Wealth & Institutional Management. Comerica focuses on relationships, and helping people and businesses be successful. In addition to Texas, Comerica Bank locations can be found in Arizona, California, Florida and Michigan, with select businesses operating in several other states, as well as in Canada and Mexico. Comerica reported total assets of $59.6 billion at Sept. 30, 2009. To receive e-mail alerts of breaking Comerica news, go to http://www.comerica.com/newsalerts.

About Dana Johnson

Dana Johnson has been senior vice president and chief economist at Comerica Inc. since January 2005. He leads the bank's economics department and provides commentary and research vital to Comerica and its customers.

He publishes a monthly Comerica Bank California Economic Activity Index, and quarterly economic briefs about the US economy and the California economy.

Johnson is quoted regularly in the Los Angeles Times, Reuters, Bloomberg, the Detroit Free Press, the Dallas Morning News and other leading media.

The economist came to Comerica from Bank One in Chicago where he served as managing director and head of research for Banc One Capital Markets. He began his career at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve Board in Washington, DC.

Johnson is a member of the National Association of Business Economists and the American Economic Association. Currently he is on the American Bankers Association Economic Advisory Committee. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Wesleyan University and a Ph.D. in Economics from Northwestern University.

To receive copies of the California Economic Activity Index, or Dana Johnson's quarterly reports, go to:

http://www.comerica.com/economy

About Lawrence Goulder

Lawrence H. Goulder is the Shuzo Nishihara Professor in Environmental and Resource Economics and the Chair of the Economics Department at Stanford University. He is also the Kennedy-Grossman Fellow in Human Biology at Stanford; a Senior Fellow at Stanford's Institute for Economic Policy Research; a Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research; and a University Fellow of Resources for the Future, a non-profit environmental and natural resource research firm located in Washington, DC.

Goulder graduated from Harvard College with an A.B. in philosophy in 1973. He obtained a master's degree in musical composition from the Ecole Normale de Musique de Paris in 1975 and earned a Ph.D. in economics from Stanford in 1982. He was a faculty member in the Department of Economics at Harvard before returning to Stanford's economics department in 1989.

Goulder's research examines the environmental and economic impacts of U.S. and international environmental policies, including policies to deal with climate change and pollution from power plants and automobiles. His work also explores the "sustainability" of consumption patterns in various countries.

For more information, go to http://www.stanford.edu/~goulder/

SOURCE Comerica Incorporated