KUALA LUMPUR: Chief executive officers (CEOs) from around the globe are becoming more confident about the prospects and outlook of the global economy, said PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).
PwC, in its 20th annual survey of CEOs worldwide, said 38% of them were confident about their company's growth prospects in the next 12 months, while 29% believed that the global economy would pick up this year.
“However, their levels of concern about economic uncertainty, over-regulation, availability of key skills, remained high at 82%, 80% and 77%, respectively.
“The CEOs also questioned whether globalisation has done anything to close the gap between rich and poor or mitigated the issue of climate change,” it said in a statement in conjunction with the release of the findings in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday.
PwC global chairman Bob Moritz said despite predictions of a Donald Trump slump and a Brexit (British exiting the European Union), the CEOs confidence in their companys growth were up from 2016.
“This is reflected in the UK, the US and elsewhere, with more of them across the world are targeting the UK and the US for investments than a year ago.
“However, three concerns are uppermost in their minds: a people and technology strategy that creates a workforce fit for the digital age; preserving trust in their businesses in a world of increasingly virtual interactions; and making globalisation work for everyone by engaging ever more with society and collaborating to find solutions,” he said.
The survey was conducted from September to December 2016 involving 1,379 CEOs from 79 countries through online, postal, face to face, and phone interviews. - Bernama
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