The annual Houston Northwest Chamber of Commerce Economic Outlook Forum gathered area economic experts and representatives from business and government March 23 at Southwestern Energy’s headquarters off I-45. Speakers reported on trends and forecasted the direction the region could take in the coming years.

Speakers also reflected on the damage caused by Hurricane Harvey and subsequent recovery efforts, along with the lasting effects the storm will have on the region’s economic future.

Patrick Jankowski, vice president of research at Greater Houston Partnership, said the region’s economy shifted away from oil and gas after oil prices dropped in 2015, and new jobs have largely been in lower-paying sectors.

“The bad news is we’ve just got the data for the past few years, and it turns out that Houston did not perform as well as originally thought in 2015 and 2016,” Jankowski said.

The good news is that job growth has recently picked up, he said.

The area lost about 78,000 oil and gas jobs from December 2014 to December 2017 and gained 87,800 jobs in other fields, including retail, restaurants, education and health care.

However, when adjusted for inflation, the area has lost $5.8 billion in wages, which in turn limits the amount workers are able to spend, he said.

Retail has seen growth, particularly in Northwest Houston, said Bobby Lieb, HNWCC director of economic development.

For the past 12 months, the Greater Houston area added 5 million square feet of retail space, of which Northwest Houston absorbed 1.35 million square feet of that space. That is a 44 percent increase over the five-year average for the region, he said.

Lieb said he believes Houston will continue to add energy and manufacturing jobs in 2018 if the price of oil remains more than $60 a barrel.

In addition to the economic downturn that hit the energy industry, Jankowski said he believes the area’s greatest challenge in recent years was the damage caused by Harvey.

The estimate for damage caused in the Greater Houston area is now $73.5 billion according to Moody’s Analytics, Jankowski said.

Other speakers at the forum included Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale, who discussed community efforts for Hurricane Harvey recovery, as well as representatives from the rail, port and aviation industries. U.S. Rep. Ted Poe, R-Humble, and U.S. Rep. Kevin Brady, R-The Woodlands, also spoke at the event. Jeff Moseley,Texas Association of Business CEO, gave the keynote address.