DAVOS: Middle East CEOs are more optimistic about global economic activity than ever, according to the annual survey by accounting and consulting firm PwC unveiled in Davos at the World Economic Forum annual meeting.
Th survey reported that regional CEOs, like their counterparts elsewhere in the world, were more confident about economic prospects than in previous years. For the first time, a majority of top executives in the region — some 52 percent — thought that global economic growth would improve this year.
That level has doubled since last year, and is higher than the previous record in 2014, before the drastic falls in the price of oil that year.
That positive feeling is in line with the global trend shown in the PWC survey. A record-breaking number of CEOs were optimistic about the economic environment worldwide, at least in the short term, the survey showed, with the strongest levels shown in the US, where 59 percent of bosses think things will improve this year.
“CEOs’ optimism in the global economy is driven by the economic indicators being so strong. With the stock markets booming and gross domestic product (GDP) expected to grow in most major markets around the world, it’s no surprise CEOs are so bullish,” said PwC’s global chairman, Bob Moritz.
CEOs, especially in the Middle East, are rather more cautious when it comes to their own markets, however. Outside of North America, confidence about the bosses’ own corporate growth is slightly better, but there was a downturn in perceived prospects in western Europe, Africa and the Middle East.
Only 33 percent of regional CEOs thought revenue growth would improve in their organizations this year, down from 38 percent last time.
The bosses’ changing attitude to foreign investment is also having an effect on regional business, the survey showed. Saudi Arabia was in the number 12 slot as an investment destination for global CEOs in 2017, but has fallen out of the top rankings this time. The UAE became the region’s top representative in the top FDI rankings, at number 15.
The US consolidated its position as the number one destination for investment, with 46 percent of CEOs saying that it was the most important for overall growth prospects in 2018, compared with 43 percent.
China was the second most important market for global CEOs, while both India and Canada reported a surge in investor interest.
Over-regulation was once again regarded as the main factor “that keeps CEOs awake at night,” according to PwC. An unchanged 43 percent said this was their biggest worry this year, but terrorism, geopolitical uncertainty and cyber threats all increased as potential concerns.
In the Middle East, geopolitical uncertainty, cyber threats and over-regulation were the top three worries for regional CEOs. They were less worried about unemployment, social instability and the availability of key skills among their potential workforce.
The PwC survey is based on interviews with 1,293 CEOs in 85 countries between August and November last year.
Mideast CEOs’ confidence in global economy at record levels
Mideast CEOs’ confidence in global economy at record levels
US pump prices surge as Iran war upends global energy supply
- Fuel prices jump over 10 percent as oil prices surge
- Analysts predict further price rises due to market conditions
MARIETTA/NEW YORK : US retail gasoline and diesel prices are soaring as the US-Israel war with Iran constrains oil and fuel exports, which could be a political test for President Donald Trump’s Republican Party ahead of midterm elections in November.
Fuel prices jumped more than 10 percent this week as oil rose above $90 a barrel, its highest in years, adding pain at the pump for consumers already strained by inflation.
Trump on Thursday shrugged off higher gasoline prices in an interview with Reuters, saying “if they rise, they rise.”
The president had vowed to lower energy prices and unleash US oil and gas drilling during his second term, but much of his tenure has been marked by volatility and uncertainty amid shifts in policies like tariffs and geopolitical turmoil.
The US is the world’s largest oil producer. It is a major exporter but also imports millions of barrels a day since it is the world’s largest oil consumer.
As of Friday, the national average prices for regular gasoline stood at $3.32 a gallon, up 11 percent from a week ago and the highest since September 2024, according to data from the motorists association AAA. Diesel was at $4.33, up 15 percent from a week ago, surging to the highest since November 2023.
Midwest, south feel the pinch
US motorists in parts of the Midwest and the South, including states that supported Trump, have seen some of the steepest increases in fuel costs since the conflict in Iran started.
In Georgia, a swing state, average retail gasoline prices rose 40.1 cents a gallon over the past week, according to fuel tracking site GasBuddy.
Andrenna McDaniel, a health care insurance worker in South Fulton, Georgia, said she was surprised to see prices skyrocket overnight.
“They jumped up so quickly,” she said on Friday, adding that she does not agree with the war at all.
McDaniel, a Democrat, said that for now she is only driving for the most important things, and feels lucky that she works from home so she does not have to drive as much as other people do. Georgia voted for Donald Trump in the 2024 election.
Trump voter Richard Soule, 69, a US Air Force veteran and a retired firefighter, said a little pain at the pump is worth Trump’s efforts to protect America.
“When President Trump went in there and bombed out their nuclear, and they just thumbed their nose at it, I believe he did the right thing at the right time,” Soule said on Friday as he filled up his Ford F-150 truck in Marietta, Georgia.
Other states, including Indiana and West Virginia have seen prices rise by 44.3 cents and 43.9 cents, respectively.
Prices may rise further
More pain may be on the way, analysts said, as oil prices continue to trend upward. On Friday, US oil futures settled at $90.90 a barrel, up nearly $10 and the biggest single-day rise since April 2020.
“Given current market conditions, the national average price of gasoline could climb toward $3.50 to $3.70 per gallon in the coming days if oil continues rising and supply disruptions persist,” GasBuddy analyst Patrick De Haan said.
The disruptions in the Middle East and the Strait of Hormuz, a key trade conduit, have boosted demand for US oil abroad, which in turn has driven up prices for domestic refiners too.
“The US has weaned itself off of its dependence on Middle Eastern crude, but obviously Asian refineries, and to a lesser extent, European refineries have not,” Denton Cinquegrana, chief oil analyst with OPIS. “That’s what you’re seeing happen in the spot market, because the demand for US exports rise, and so the price rise.”
Seasonal factors could add further pressure. Gasoline prices typically go up in the spring and peak in the summer due to higher gasoline demand and production of summer-blend gasoline, which is more costly to produce. Diesel fuel saw an even more aggressive jump since Iran began retaliating against US and Israeli strikes, significantly disrupting shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
Global diesel inventories have remained in tight supply due to heavy demand for heating and power generation during a prolonged winter in the US and other parts of the world and a structural tightness of refining capacity. Sticker prices of everything from food to furniture go up when the cost of diesel goes up, as the fuel is mainly used in freight transportation, manufacturing, agriculture, and global shipping, analysts said.
“In a world where buzzword seems to be ‘affordability’, that is certainly not going to help,” Cinquegrana said.
