Leila Bengali
Leila Bengali is an economist at The Anderson Forecast. She joined in 2019. As an economist, and a native Californian, she focuses on modeling the California economy and on policy issues that are relevant to California. Having studied behavioral economics both in college and in graduate school, she brings insights from this field to her work at The Anderson Forecast. She received her Ph.D. in economics from Yale University in 2019 where she was selected for the Russell Sage Foundation Summer Institute in Behavioral Economics and awarded the Whitebox Advisors Doctoral Fellowship. Her fields of concentration were behavioral economics and public finance.
After graduating from Swarthmore College in 2011 with a B.A. in economics (major) and psychology (minor), she worked as an analyst at Analysis Group in the San Francisco Bay Area. During her time in economic consulting, she worked with a team of economists and experts to provide litigation support and research for major national and international companies in industries ranging from manufacturing to information technology. After working in economic consulting, Leila joined Economic Research at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. Working with prominent economists on issues of employment, education, and economic mobility, Leila conducted research supporting U.S. monetary policy, writing reports for both internal and external audiences.
Leila's research lies at the intersection of behavioral economics and public finance. Within these fields, she focuses on how and why individuals use or ignore information when making decisions and on the resulting implications for policy. Leila has also worked with local governments to design and implement policy evaluations and has published in the field of labor economics.
Leila Bengali is an economist at The Anderson Forecast. She joined in 2019. As an economist, and a native Californian, she focuses on modeling the California economy and on policy issues that are relevant to California. Having studied behavioral economics both in college and in graduate school, she brings insights from this field to her work at The Anderson Forecast. She received her Ph.D. in economics from Yale University in 2019 where she was selected for the Russell Sage Foundation Summer Institute in Behavioral Economics and awarded the Whitebox Advisors Doctoral Fellowship. Her fields of concentration were behavioral economics and public finance.
After graduating from Swarthmore College in 2011 with a B.A. in economics (major) and psychology (minor), she worked as an analyst at Analysis Group in the San Francisco Bay Area. During her time in economic consulting, she worked with a team of economists and experts to provide litigation support and research for major national and international companies in industries ranging from manufacturing to information technology. After working in economic consulting, Leila joined Economic Research at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. Working with prominent economists on issues of employment, education, and economic mobility, Leila conducted research supporting U.S. monetary policy, writing reports for both internal and external audiences.
Leila's research lies at the intersection of behavioral economics and public finance. Within these fields, she focuses on how and why individuals use or ignore information when making decisions and on the resulting implications for policy. Leila has also worked with local governments to design and implement policy evaluations and has published in the field of labor economics.
Christopher Thornberg
Christopher Thornberg founded Beacon Economics LLC in 2006. Under his leadership the firm has become one of the most respected research organizations in California serving public and private sector clients across the United States. In 2015, Dr. Thornberg also became Director of the UC Riverside School of Business Center for Economic Forecasting and Development and an Adjunct Professor at the School.
An expert in economic and revenue forecasting, regional economics, economic policy, and labor and real estate markets, Dr. Thornberg has consulted for private industry, cities, counties, and public agencies. He became nationally known for forecasting the subprime mortgage market crash that began in 2007, and was one of the few economists on record to predict the global economic recession that followed. Dr. Thornberg holds a Ph.D in Business Economics from The Anderson School at UCLA, and a B.S. degree in Business Administration from the State University of New York at Buffalo.
Christopher Thornberg founded Beacon Economics LLC in 2006. Under his leadership the firm has become one of the most respected research organizations in California serving public and private sector clients across the United States. In 2015, Dr. Thornberg also became Director of the UC Riverside School of Business Center for Economic Forecasting and Development and an Adjunct Professor at the School.
An expert in economic and revenue forecasting, regional economics, economic policy, and labor and real estate markets, Dr. Thornberg has consulted for private industry, cities, counties, and public agencies. He became nationally known for forecasting the subprime mortgage market crash that began in 2007, and was one of the few economists on record to predict the global economic recession that followed. Dr. Thornberg holds a Ph.D in Business Economics from The Anderson School at UCLA, and a B.S. degree in Business Administration from the State University of New York at Buffalo.
Todd Lowenstein
Head of Equities, Investment Management & Trust
Todd Lowenstein is Managing Director at The Private Bank. Todd is also the Equity Research Executive at HighMark Capital Management (HighMark), an investment advisory subsidiary of MUFG Union Bank, N.A., where he is responsible for leading HighMark’s equity research activities. He is also a member of HighMark’s Investment Policy Committee and Asset Allocation Committee.
Todd joined Union Bank in 2001 and has over 25 years of experience in the financial services industry. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from University of California at Santa Barbara, and a Master of Business Administration with from the UCLA Anderson School of Management. Additionally, he is a Certified Public Accountant, a member of the Chartered Financial Analyst® Society of Los Angeles, and an adjunct professor in the Economics Department at UC Santa Barbara. Todd is a regular contributor to the financial news media including Bloomberg, Barron’s, the Wall Street Journal, and Dow Jones.
Head of Equities, Investment Management & Trust
Todd Lowenstein is Managing Director at The Private Bank. Todd is also the Equity Research Executive at HighMark Capital Management (HighMark), an investment advisory subsidiary of MUFG Union Bank, N.A., where he is responsible for leading HighMark’s equity research activities. He is also a member of HighMark’s Investment Policy Committee and Asset Allocation Committee.
Todd joined Union Bank in 2001 and has over 25 years of experience in the financial services industry. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from University of California at Santa Barbara, and a Master of Business Administration with from the UCLA Anderson School of Management. Additionally, he is a Certified Public Accountant, a member of the Chartered Financial Analyst® Society of Los Angeles, and an adjunct professor in the Economics Department at UC Santa Barbara. Todd is a regular contributor to the financial news media including Bloomberg, Barron’s, the Wall Street Journal, and Dow Jones.