Obama, business leaders take up economy

WASHINGTON, Dec. 15 (UPI) -- President Barack Obama met in Washington Wednesday with 20 top business leaders, asking them to focus on moving the U.S. economy forward, the White House said.

The meeting, which went on for more than 4 hours at Blair House, the presidential guest house across the street from the White House, was not open to the public or the media. In a statement, the White House said the session focused on economic growth opportunities, improved workforce training, expanded private sector hiring and global competition.

Before the meeting, Obama told reporters he hoped "to elicit ideas from these business leaders that will help us not only climb out of recession but seize the promise of this moment." Following the meeting, he said, "I feel very confident we made some good progress."

The Washington Post reported several executives who took part said the meeting was constructive but the president was not specific about possible outcomes from the encounter.

"I think at the end of the day the idea is how can business and the White House work hand-in-hand together to create more growth in this country," UBS Group Americas Chief Executive Officer Robert Wolf said.

Some business leaders have said the administration's focus on financial and healthcare reform has left the private sector uncertain about growth and reluctant to increase hiring, the Post said. In response, the White House has noted that U.S. companies posted record profits from July to September, the newspaper said.