As they look forward to the year ahead, CEOs are less confident about prospects for the global economy than they were in 2015, with entertainment and media leaders even less so, says PwC’s 19th Annual Global CEO Survey.
The survey found that three-quarters of CEOs believe there are more threats to their company’s growth prospects than there were three years ago, up from 67% last year. Geopolitical uncertainty and the speed of technological change are all weighing heavily on entertainment and media CEOs. Only 22% believe growth prospects will improve over the next 12 months, which is way down from 34% last year.
Many CEOs do still see opportunities but they are looking to play things safe. The United States and China are far and away the most important markets that CEOs identify as offering the best prospects for growth, with Germany and the United Kingdom some way behind.
That said, CEOs also see potential in India’s bullish business attitude and in Brazil despite its current political and economic struggles. Potential new opportunities in Mexico and the UAE have also made CEOs pay attention in the last year.
Like last year, PwC’s 19th Annual Global CEO Survey, found that technology appears to be the main driver of change in the entertainment and media sector, with 89% of CEOs saying that tech advances are most likely to influence stakeholder expectations. And about 74% of CEOs are concerned that new market entrants could threaten growth prospects. And even as issues like an increased tax burden and governments’ response to fiscal deficits and debt burdens loom large, geopolitical uncertainty (exacerbated by regional conflicts and increased terrorism attacks) is a top concern for nearly three-quarters (74%) of CEOs.