2026 Economic Outlook Conference a rousing success

THE WOODLANDS, TX – More than 800 attendees descended on the grand ballroom at The Woodlands Waterway Marriott recently for the 2026 Economic Outlook Conference, the annual business brief bonanza hosted by The Woodlands Area Chamber of Commerce. This year, the EOC pulled out all the stops with top-tier panels and speakers. Woodlands Online is proud to be a media sponsor of the event.

The morning began with registrations, breakfast, a welcome, and an update from Marc Cunningham, the global managing director of the Texas Stock Exchange. Perhaps not coincidentally, the New York Stock Exchange – our nation’s financial benchmark – hit over 50,000 points that same day for the first time in history.

Next, the three lions of The Woodlands’ economic path – Aaron Cox, president and CEO of The Woodlands Area Chamber of Commerce; Jevon Gibb, CEO of The Woodlands Area Economic Development Partnership; and Brad Bailey, chairman of The Woodlands Township Board of Directors – gave a local economic update. Before the morning’s break for coffee and networking, Daniel Potter, the director of the Kinder Institute for Urban Research out of Rice University, filled the room with statistics on trends and forecasts for The Woodlands and Montgomery County.

The morning was rounded out by Jesse B. Thompson, senior business economist from the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, followed by a ‘reporter roundtable’ featuring a panel comprised of Nicole Preston, general manager of Community Impact Newspaper; Traci Pelter, market president and publisher of Houston Business Journal; and Paul Cobler, economy and industry reporter from The Texas Tribune, and moderated by KHOU News anchor Jacob Rascon. John Murphy, senior vice president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, then took the stage with a national economic update.

After lunch, the conference wasted no time in bringing out the big guns with a CEO panel featuring Steven Prusak, Dr. Davil L. Callender, Peter Huntsman, and moderator Justin Kendrick, the respective CEOs of Chevron Phillips Chemical, Memorial Hermann Health System, Huntsman Corporation, and Memorial Hermann The Woodlands Medical Center.

The keynote address was then given by special guest Ron Insana, the veteran financial broadcast journalist and bestselling author who has been named one of the ‘Top 100 Business News Journalists of the 20th Century.’

“As we continue to move forward, we elevate the opportunity to connect, and that’s where today’s energy is coming from. Folks are finding people to connect with and business opportunities in this room. We bring solid information that allows people to digest and talk about,” Aaron Cox told Woodlands Online. “Our goal is to be collaborative and solid partners, signing from the same hymnal; that makes us stronger together, and we can then turn around and take that message to the rest of our region and be the leaders that we’re called to be.”

The conference ended with closing remarks and the popular Closing Bell Connections Hour at the Marriott Acqua Restaurant & Lounge.

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