The National Symposium on American Competitiveness, sponsored by the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, brought business leaders, government policy makers and business scholars together to determine a means of renewing America’s productivity and leadership in the global marketplace. Speakers in the forum discussed the economy and America’s foreign policy and trade policies in relation to the U.S. position in the global economy. Mr. Forbes discussed the state of the economy, which he said was in an unnecessary recession brought on by errant governmental policies. He predicted the recession would end by early summer in 1991, to be followed by a resurgence of competitiveness in the United States. He said the recession was brought on by the government’s mistakes in raising interest rates to slow the economy and lowering the dollar in relation to other currencies. Mr. Lewis spoke on American competitiveness, showing that America is either the most competitive nation on Earth or a mediocre competitor in the global economy depending upon the definition of competitiveness being applied. He went on to compare economic factors between the U.S., Japan and Germany that show America to be a surprisingly strong competitor in the global marketplace.