CEO Confidence Heads South Before Davos 2016

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By Jon C. Ogg Updated Published
CEO Confidence Heads South Before Davos 2016

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If a PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) report holds up, it looks a lot like your typical chief executive officer is increasingly less confident about the economic picture for 2016. Concerns about geopolitical uncertainty have increased sharply, as has the likelihood of revenues declining in major economies.

Monday’s PwC report was issued out of Davos, Switzerland, and noted that confidence in the global economy fell by 10 points. Some 90% of CEOs are also said to be changing how they use technology to assess and deliver on customer and other stakeholder expectations.

Two-thirds of CEOs see more threats facing their businesses today than they did just three years ago, and just over a quarter of CEOs believe global growth will improve over the next 12 months. While that is where the 10-point decline came from, this is now 66% negative versus 27% positive.

Other notes are as follows:

  • CEO pessimism is on the rise.
  • Nearly half of CEOS expect to increase their headcount over the next 12 months, meaning that about half do not plan on new net hires.

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The top five CEO worries were listed as follows:

  • Over-regulation
  • Geopolitical uncertainty
  • Exchange rate volatility
  • Availability of key skills
  • Government response to fiscal deficit and debt burdens
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About the Author Jon C. Ogg →

Jon Ogg has been a financial news analyst since 1997. Mr. Ogg set up one of the first audio squawk box services for traders called TTN, which he sold in 2003. He has previously worked as a licensed broker to some of the top U.S. and E.U. financial institutions, managed capital, and has raised private capital at the seed and venture stage. He has lived in Copenhagen, Denmark, as well as New York and Chicago, and he now lives in Houston, Texas. Jon received a Bachelor of Business Administration in finance at University of Houston in 1992. www.247wallst.com.

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