PwC has released the results of its latest global CEO survey today and the outlook is not looking good. A majority of 73% of CEOs surveyed predict that global economic growth will slow in 2023. This marks the worst outlook for the global economy since PwC began conducting these surveys in 2011.
The survey, conducted under the PwC Global CEO Survey, surveyed 4,410 CEOs across 105 countries and regions during the month of October and November 2022. The question posed was: “What is the top threat to the global economy?” The results showed that 40% of CEOs picked inflation as the top threat, 31% picked macroeconomic volatility and 25% picked geopolitical conflict. The PwC chairman stated that a volatile economy, the highest inflation in decades, and geopolitical conflicts are key factors that have led CEOs to have a negative outlook on the economic outlook for more than 10 years.
Furthermore, according to PwC, nearly 40% of surveyed CEOs believe their organizations will not be able to grow in the next 10 years without significant changes to their business model. This includes shifts in consumer demand and regulations, as well as shortages in the workforce and skills needed to do the job. Technology disruption is also seen as the biggest challenge affecting the long-term profitability of the industry.
It’s clear that the global economy is facing some significant challenges, and it will be interesting to see what actions will be taken to address them in the coming months.