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How do business leaders view the world economy?

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Watching the world economy

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US election jitters. Companies are getting ahead of potential volatility in the markets by hurrying to secure financing before November’s US presidential election, the Financial Times reports. To date, businesses have issued dollar bonds totaling $606 billion in 2024. That’s the largest amount since around 1990 and an increase of 40% from the same time in 2023. Investors and banking leaders report that companies are eager to lock in favorable borrowing terms before the election, fearing that markets could get more costly later. [FT]

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Feeling confident. American CEOs are feeling optimistic about the US economy, and many are predicting increased sales and capital investments, found a recent Business Roundtable survey cited by Axios. That suggests that the economy could continue to grow in the coming months. From January to March, the index of CEO sentiment rose 11 points to reach 85, surpassing its historical average for the first time since 2022. CEOs are projecting a steady pace of growth, with GDP expanding by 2.1% in 2024. [Axios]

In a year brimming with national elections, respondents increasingly see transitions of political leadership as a primary hazard to the global economy.

On McKinsey.com

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Renewed optimism. What a difference a year can make. In the latest McKinsey Global Survey on economic conditions, executives’ outlook on domestic conditions in most regions has become more hopeful, despite ongoing concerns about geopolitical instability. Views of the global economy are the most positive that they’ve been since March 2022, McKinsey Global Institute chair Sven Smit and coauthors reveal. Of those surveyed, 46% expect the global economy to improve in the next six months—nearly double the share of respondents expecting worsening conditions.

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Top risks to growth. The category of geopolitical instability and conflict continues to be the most cited risk to global economic growth, selected by two-thirds of respondents for the second quarter in a row. Yet in the survey for the first quarter of 2024—a year in which more than 60 countries will hold national elections—transitions of political leadership have jumped to the second-most-cited, from the fifth-most-cited, threat to the world economy. Discover five charts that capture how business leaders currently perceive the global economy.

See leaders’ economic views

—Edited by Belinda Yu, editor, Atlanta

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How do business leaders view the world economy?

Watching the world economy

In the news

In a year brimming with national elections, respondents increasingly see transitions of political leadership as a primary hazard to the global economy.

On McKinsey.com