In one corner: Growing geopolitical worries, a wobbly start to earnings season — from some large banks and freight firms, among others — and sticky headline inflation numbers.

In the other corner: Strong retail sales, rising industrial production and an Atlanta Fed GDPNow Q1 forecast that has in the past month climbed to nearly 3% from 2% on the back of improving consumer spending and business investment stats.

It strikes me that the challenge to business leaders isn’t about picking one of those corners and planning accordingly but about threading the needle between the two. A new Grant Thornton survey of CFOs illustrates that point: Execs are at their most optimistic about growth since mid-2021 but half expect operating costs to climb in the next year. Much threading lies ahead.

— Geert De Lombaerde