It was wonderful to see so many members and guests after not meeting for two weeks! We had one guest, Mark, who talked to us about Union Mission and Chick-fil-A. Union Mission is eligible to receive a one time grant from Chick-fil-A and all we have to do is vote for them to receive the funds on the Chick-fil-A app. If you have the app, it takes less than 1 minute to click on Union Mission and this is the only organization in our area in the running to be the recipient! Mark encouraged all those in attendance to please vote and to have their friends and family vote as well. Once all Rotary Business items were discussed, Cheri Dean introduced Dr. Mika Toma, a professor of Economics at Georgia Southern, to give us an economic update for Savannah.
Dr. Mike Toma began by saying the United States economy is back on trend following the Covid pandemic. Inflation is under control and the economy is fundamentally sound with a slow rate of growth. He anticipates that the Fed will have two maybe three more rate cuts over the next six to nine months. The 2% interest rate will not happen again but he does believe we will get back to a little over 5%.
The addition of the Hyundai Motor Plant to our area is a once in a lifetime opportunity for our community. Approximately 80% of the Hyundai workforce will be relocating to Savannah. Due to the Georgia Port Authority and Hyundai, Savannah is well positioned for the future.